+ 1970 News Releases (7.6 Mb PDF file) - NASA

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The cake-lid shaped STB was designed and built by the Martin
Marietta Corporation_ Denver under a NASA supporting Development
contract. The vehicle structure was delivered to MSC in April 1968_
where it has since been equipped with hatches_ windows_ trusses_
insulation, surface skin and other auxiliary equipment. The vehicle
satisfactorily completed static launch load tests_ docking and
thrusting load tests and leakage and pressure tests before going into
the current thermal-vacuum test series.
The STB test program is managed by MSC's Spacecraft Design Office
,_ith support from the Center's Space Environment Test, Structures and
Mechanics, Crew Systems, Engineering_ and Technical Services Divisions.
During the STB test Manned Spacecraft Center engineers vail also
be evaluating the performance of a novel device called a heat pipe,
_vhich may be useful in controlling the temperature of future space
vehicles.
Up to now spacecraft designers have faced a difficult problem
in maintaining the proper temperatures in spacecraft, which receive
large heat inputs from the sun on one side and radiate heat rapidly
into space on the other side. This condition can cause a number of
problems including failure of electrical equipment in areas of high
heating and freezing of propellant and fluid lines in areas of extreme
cooling.
The Apollo svacecraft uses insulation_ heaters and absorptive
and reflective coatings to minimize adverse thermal effects. During
flight the spacecraft is also rotated slowly to give more uniform
surface
temperatures.
Heat pipes transfer thermal energy efficiently and uniformly
from one location to another and could conceivably do much to solve
the tricky problem of thermal control in space _ehicles.
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