Space Power Facility

Space Power Facility (SPF) is a NASA facility used to test spaceflight hardware under simulated launch and spaceflight conditions. The SPF is part of NASA's Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility, which in turn is part of the Glenn Research Center. The Neil A. Armstrong Test Facility and the SPF are located near Sandusky, Ohio (Oxford Township, Erie County, Ohio).

The SPF is able to simulate a spacecraft's launch environment, as well as in-space environments. NASA has developed these capabilities under one roof to optimize testing of spaceflight hardware while minimizing transportation issues. Space Power Facility has become a "One Stop Shop" to qualify flight hardware for crewed space flight. This facility provides the capability to perform the following environmental testing:

This is a vacuum chamber built by NASA in 1969. It stands 122 feet (37 m) high and 100 feet (30 m) in diameter, enclosing a bullet-shaped space. It is the world's largest thermal vacuum chamber. It was originally commissioned for nuclear-electric power studies under vacuum conditions, but was later decommissioned. It was subsequently recommissioned for use in testing spacecraft propulsion systems. Recent uses include testing the airbag landing systems for the Mars Pathfinder and the Mars Exploration Rovers Spirit and Opportunity, under simulated Mars atmospheric conditions.

The facility was designed and constructed to test both nuclear and non-nuclear space hardware in a simulated low-Earth-orbiting environment. Although the facility was designed for testing nuclear hardware, only non-nuclear tests have been performed throughout its history. Test programs performed at the facility include high-energy experiments, rocket-fairing separation tests, Mars Lander system tests, deployable solar sail tests, and International Space Station hardware tests. The facility can sustain a high vacuum (10⁻⁶ torr, 130 μPa), and simulate solar radiation via a 4 MW quartz heat lamp array, solar spectrum by a 400 kW arc lamp, and cold environments (−320 °F (−195.6 °C)) with a variable geometry cryogenic cold shroud.

The facility is available on a full-cost reimbursable basis to government, universities, and the private sector.

The aluminum test chamber is a vacuum-tight aluminum plate vessel that is 100 feet (30 m) in diameter and 122 feet (37 m) high. Designed for an external pressure of 2.5 psi (17 kPa) and internal pressure of 5 psi (34 kPa), the chamber is constructed of Type 5083 aluminum which is a clad on the interior surface with a 1⁄8 in (3.2 mm) thick type 3003 aluminum for corrosion resistance. This material was selected because of its low neutron absorption cross-section. The floor plate and vertical shell are 1 inch (25 mm) (total) thick, while the dome shell is 1+3⁄8 in (35 mm). Welded circumferentially to the exterior surface is aluminum structural T-section members that are 3 feet (0.9 m) deep and 2 feet (0.6 m) wide. The doors of the test chamber are 50 by 50 feet (15 by 15 m) in size and have double door seals to prevent leakage. The chamber floor was designed for a load of 300 tons.

The concrete chamber enclosure serves not only as a radiological shield but also as a primary vacuum barrier from atmospheric pressure. 130 feet (40 m) in diameter and 150 feet (46 m) in height, the chamber was designed to withstand atmospheric pressure outside of the chamber at the same time vacuum conditions are occurring within. The concrete thickness varies from 6 to 8 feet (1.8 to 2.4 m) and contains a leak-tight steel containment barrier embedded within. The chamber's doors are 50 by 50 feet (15 by 15 m) and have inflatable seals. The space between the concrete enclosure and the aluminum test chamber is pumped down to a pressure of 20 torrs (2.7 kPa) during a test.

Brian Cox of the BBC's Human Universe filmed a rock and feather drop episode at the Space Power Facility.