(Un-)Packing and Beginnings

Spider-2 finally has a chance to go to the field! After a short notice decision that we’d have a chance to fly this year, we jumped into action spending a frantic month packing. I include a few photos from this time in Princeton, mainly of our cryostat (named Llorothaag, or Lloro for short) going into her box.

First we go to Palestine, TX, and the Columbia Scientific Balloon Facility. There we will reassemble and test Spider, and integrate with the NASA electronics.

Lloro’s truck arrived on May 27, the first wave of people arrived on May 31, and I came with another wave the day after. Much of the time so far has been spent unpacking and organizing our work area, but we’re also starting on some work and assembly that will take a while: preparing Spider’s six telescope inserts to do science, and preparing to test all of the ambient temperature electronics in the Bemco. The Bemco is a big thermal/vacuum test chamber used to simulate the environment of a balloon payload in the stratosphere.

Llorothaag starts to be boxed in

I hope she (Spider's cryostat) isn't claustrophobic.

Boxed on two sides

All sides on, plus extra 2x4 bracing at the top

Plus Simon, proud of his work.

All boxed up

In the increasingly empty Princeton highbay

Sea container "A" before its "final" closing

"Not quite final", but the last I have a photo of

And ccontainer "B"

The truck departs Princeton

Back in Palestine

Back at CSBF's science team highbays, basically our home away from home.

Unpacking

I arrived a day later. First-wavers Susan and Suren have already unpacked a lot

Full of boxes

We won't be playing any badminton in the west highbay

Lloro arrived intact

I spy on Sherry taking a selfie

More fo Lloro

Plus a better view of our good luck sacrificed unicorn head. And Corwin unpacking parts from the crate base.

Tables set up for telescope insert work

Bye bye bugs

Suren cleans out the bug graveyard in the highbay's cable trough

East highbay

Also full of Spider boxes, as we sprawl over the whole building

Cryostat plus love seat

The love seat is excellent swag that came with our large Uline orders while packing

Starting to uncrate inserts

Applying protective top cover

Texas highbays have a lot of fauna

Intact shipping brackets

And Vy peeking inside the outer wrap. The new brackets (black plastic parts) to support the focal plane during shipping arrived safely

Office area

Set up in the back of the highbay

Four inserts out

Lloro

Lifted off the crate base

Shackles

Used to rig the ground-support cart to the lifting spreader bar

Break time

Joseph and Sherry reset in front of the inserts

Progress

The highbay grows slightly more organized

Lloro lifted

To the normal position for ground operations. Also swapped the support bearings to the flight versions

Lloro in profile

Lloro's crate is tarped in the "Tim shed"

Where Tiny Tim once roamed

Tim Shed

Group action shot

Tagging the new IRTHM

"Insert rotation thingamajig". One more needed to be made to be able to work on all 6 inserts at once

Spider stencil

Bemco

Meanwhile Susan moves electronics over to the "Bemco" thermal-vacuum test chamber. To test things in simulated flight-like conditions.

Highbay door cracked

On a precious nice day

Liquid helium fill lines

And unicorn's new home

Five inserts open

As we inspect them for shipping damage, and prepare them to do science

Bonus carpentry

Suren makes use of the IRTHM off-cuts