NASA's Kepler Spacecraft Baked and Ready for More Tests

MEDIA RELATIONS OFFICE
JET PROPULSION LABORATORY
CALIFORNIA INSTITUTE OF TECHNOLOGY
NATIONAL AERONAUTICS AND SPACE ADMINISTRATION
PASADENA, CALIFORNIA 91109. TELEPHONE 818-354-5011
http://www.jpl.nasa.gov

Whitney Clavin 818-354-4673
Jet Propulsion Laboratory, Pasadena, Calif.
whitney.clavin@jpl.nasa.gov

Michael Mewhinney 650-604-3937
Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif.
Michael.S.Mewhinney@nasa.gov

Roz Brown 303-533-6059
Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp., Boulder, Colo.
rbrown@ball.com

NEWS RELEASE: 2008-179 Sept. 23, 2008

NASA's Kepler Spacecraft Baked and Ready for More Tests

NASA's planet-hunting Kepler mission, scheduled to launch in 2009, has survived an
extreme temperature test.

The thermal vacuum test is part of a series of environmental tests the spacecraft will
undergo before it blasts into space aboard a Delta II rocket from the Cape Canaveral Air
Force Station, Fla.

"Kepler functioned extremely well at the intense temperatures it will encounter in space,"
said James Fanson, Kepler project manager at NASA's Jet Propulsion Laboratory,
Pasadena, Calif.

The test, which was performed at Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. in Boulder,
Colo., simulates the vacuum of space, and the extreme temperatures Kepler will face
once launched. The spacecraft is tucked into a vacuum chamber and surrounded by a cold
shroud to mimic the deep chill of space. One side of the spacecraft -- the side with solar
panels -- is then baked as if it were being heated by the sun.

The goal is to make sure that the spacecraft and its detectors operate properly in the
space-like environment. An electromagnetic compatibility test, to ensure Kepler's
electronics are sound, will begin soon.

Kepler will monitor 100,000 stars, searching for signs of planets -- including ones as
small as or smaller than Earth. To date, no Earth-sized planet has been discovered.

"The results of these tests are now being used to prepare for the science operations that
will start after the spacecraft launches and undergoes in-orbit checkout," said Bill
Borucki of NASA Ames Research Center, Moffett Field, Calif., the science principal
investigator for the Kepler Mission.

Kepler is a NASA Discovery mission. In addition to being the home organization of the
science principal investigator, NASA Ames Research Center is responsible for the
ground system development, mission operations and science data analysis. Kepler
mission development is managed by JPL. Ball Aerospace & Technologies Corp. is
responsible for developing the Kepler flight system and supporting mission operations.

More information about the Kepler mission is at http://kepler.nasa.gov/ . More
information about extrasolar planets and NASA's planet-finding program is at
http://planetquest.jpl.nasa.gov .

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