Space bound equipment set for shake, rattle and roll

Satellite equipment developed with the help of space engineers and technicians at the University of Leicester is about to receive its first taste of the harsh conditions of space -without even leaving the UK.

The sophisticated instrument - designed to examine the first light in the Universe and the formation of planets around other stars – will shortly be put through its paces in the space test chamber at the Science and Technology Facilities Council's Rutherford Appleton Laboratory (RAL). The tests include ensuring it can survive the vibrations of a rocket launch and operate successfully in the cold vacuum of space.

The University of Leicester has played a pivotal role developing the mechanical engineering know-how behind one of four instruments to be placed on board the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) to be launched in 2014 in order to succeed the current Hubble telescope.

The JWST telescope will produce the sharpest images yet of the farthest depths of the cosmos – thanks, in part, to the work of engineers and scientists at the University of Leicester Space Research Centre.

Space Research Centre Manager, John Pye said, ''JWST will have four scientific instruments. One of these instruments – the mid-infrared instrument (MIRI) is being designed and built by a European Consortium of scientific institutions and industry, including the University of Leicester.''

Dr Pye, who is also the university's lead staff member for MIRI, also said, ''We provide the structural and mechanical engineering lead for the design and development of MIRI, and with colleagues at the Danish National Space Centre (DNSC) are responsible for the MIRI 'Primary Structure' that ensures that all the critical components of the instrument are held in close alignment even through the large vibrations and shock of launch (on a European Space Agency Ariane-V rocket) and during cool-down to the operational temperature of -266 C (just 7 degrees above 'absolute zero').''