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GP-B Post-Flight Analysis—Final Report - Gravity Probe B - Stanford ...

GP-B Post-Flight Analysis—Final Report - Gravity Probe B - Stanford ...

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On Wednesday 29 June 2005, members of our Anomaly Review Boardpresented information about our <strong>GP</strong>-B anomaly review process to aNASA group studying anomaly resolution best practices at NASA'sAmes Research Center here in Mountain View, CA.On Thursday, 30 June 2005, a multi-bit error (MBE) occurred in abenign location in the Gyro Suspension (GSS) computer for gyro #2.This memory location was subsequently patched, restoring its propervalue.8 JULY 2005—GRAVITY PROBE B MISSION UPDATEMission Elapsed Time: 444 days (63 weeks/14.56 months)Science Data Collection: 315 days (45 weeks/10.33 months)Current Orbit #: 6,553 as of 5:30 PM PSTSpacecraft General Health: GoodRoll Rate: Normal at 0.7742 rpm (77.5 seconds per revolution)Dewar Temperature: 1.82 kelvin, holding steadyCommand & Data Handling (CDH): B-side (backup) computer incontrol, Multi-bit errors (MBE): 0, Single-bit errors (SBE): 6 (dailyaverage)As of Mission Day 444, the <strong>Gravity</strong> <strong>Probe</strong> B vehicle and payload are ingood health. All four gyros are digitally suspended in science mode.The spacecraft is flying drag-free around Gyro #1.Last Saturday, 2 July 2005, a <strong>GP</strong>S channel alignment error flag wastriggered in the spacecraft's B-side (backup) Global PositioningSystem (<strong>GP</strong>S) as it passed over the Earth's north magnetic pole. Wehave seen this same behavior twice before with the A-side (main) <strong>GP</strong>Sreceiver, and in both previous cases there was no discernible effect onthe <strong>GP</strong>S system performance. An analysis of this latest event is inprogress, and if necessary, we will reboot the <strong>GP</strong>S system.Otherwise, all was quiet and nominal on-board the <strong>GP</strong>-B spacecraftduring this year's 4th of July holiday weekend. Because its orbit did notpass over North America last Monday evening, the telescope detectorson-board the spacecraft did not register any brilliant bursts ofpyrotechnics in the skies over U.S cities.Yesterday, we performed a calibration test on gyro #3 (formerly thedrag-free gyro) in which the gyro rotor was electrically “nudged” tovarious pre-defined positions within its housing. About 45 minutesinto this test, the Gyro Suspension System (GSS) for gyro #3automatically switched from digital to analog suspension mode.Analog suspension is used primarily as a backup mode that holds agyro rotor securely to keep it from striking the housing wall and allowsonly coarse positioning of the rotor. By contrast, digital suspensionmode is computer-controlled; it puts less torque on the rotor andenables its position within the housing to be controlled with extremelyhigh precision. Yesterday evening, we sent commands to re-suspendgyro #3 in digital mode, and the calibration tests are continuing todayand into the weekend. Due to the nature of this calibration test and theperformance history of gyro #3, we will not be surprised if ittransitions to analog mode again during the second phase of thiscalibration test.performance stabilizes during this period because the Sun is no longerheating up the spacecraft's attitude reference platform (ARP), wherethe navigational rate gyros and star trackers are mounted, on theforward dome of the dewar.As we have reported recently, our measurements indicate that thesuperfluid helium in the dewar will be exhausted in approximatelyeight weeks—during the period of maximum ATC stabilization. Thissituation has raised some questions about how to proceed through thefinal two months of the mission. Our original plan was to stopcollecting relativity data 3-5 weeks before the helium runs out and tospend those final weeks of the mission exclusively running calibrationtests of the science instruments. Some of these tests involve placingtorques (forces) on the gyros, and we cannot use the science datacollected from a gyro while it is undergoing such a test. Anothercalibration test involves purposely moving the telescope's pointingaxis away from our guide star, IM Pegasi, to a different star and thenback again. Clearly, we cannot collect any science data during thistelescope pointing test.However, our plan for spending the final 3-5 weeks of the missionexclusively running calibration tests is not cast in stone, and we arecurrently at a point of making some trade-off decisions in this regard.For example, we have determined that it is possible to perform thegyro torquing calibration tests on an individual gyro, while the othergyros continue to collect science data. (We are performing such acalibration test on gyro #3 right now.) To address these issues andtrade-offs, our <strong>GP</strong>-B management and science teams spent the entireday today at an off-site meeting. The decisions resulting from this offsitemeeting will determine our course of action for the remainder ofthe mission, and we will report on these decisions in an upcomingMission News story.In conjunction with today's off-site meeting, yesterday we had a visitfrom Tony Lyons, our NASA Program Manager at NASA's MarshallSpace <strong>Flight</strong> Center (MSFC) in Huntsville, Alabama and his boss,Tony Lavoie, Director of Space Systems Programs at MSFC. TonyLavoie assumed his current role at the Marshall Center last October,and he had never before visited <strong>GP</strong>-B. So, instead of our usual dailyall-hands meeting yesterday, we began the day with a briefpresentation to both of our MSFC visitors by <strong>GP</strong>-B PrincipalInvestigator, Francis Everitt, <strong>GP</strong>-B Program Manager, Gaylord Green,and several <strong>GP</strong>-B staff members.ANALYZING END OF MISSION TRADE-OFFSTowards the beginning of June, the spacecraft transitioned out of itstwo-week full sun season to once again being eclipsed from the Sun forpart of each orbit. Furthermore, the position of the Earth relative tothe Sun has been changing so that the Sun's light is now movingtowards the rear of the spacecraft, and this orientation will continuethrough August and September. During this period, the spacecraft'sAttitude and Translation Control (ATC) performance will be the moststable, giving us the “cleanest” data of the entire mission. The pointingThe presentation included an overview of the program for the benefitof Tony Lavoie, followed by a status update on the spacecraft and datacollection. Following the presentations, Francis Everitt, GaylordGreen, and <strong>GP</strong>-B co-founder Bob Cannon took both of our MSFC<strong>Gravity</strong> <strong>Probe</strong> B — <strong>Post</strong> <strong>Flight</strong> Analysis • Final <strong>Report</strong> March 2007 507

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