Integration, adjustment and measurements
An important milestone in production of a Solar simulator is the integration with the vacuum facility to generate a dimensional model of the hardware, for example using the Spatial Analyzer software. Therefore, integration stage requires adjustment of reciprocal dimensional position of the TVAC test bench components and thorough measurements of spatial coordinates. In future the dimensional model will be used to plan, optimize and record data on thermal vacuum tests.
Solar simulator is a rather close replica of the real Sun. However, in order to use it to test spacecrafts, thorough measurement of light beam parameters is required.
The following parameters are subject to measurement and certification:
- Irradiance distribution (in plane and in volume) [W/m2]
- Non-uniformity of irradiance distribution [%]
- Irradiation spectrum
- Misalignment of the light beam
The measurements are made using certified measurement methods that ensure traceability up to the primary standard. The measurements are relied on to build up a dimensional model of the light beam that in its turn can be integrated into dimensional model of the facility.