COMET INTERCEPTOR MISSION UPDATE: AVIONIC TEST BENCH - OHB-Italia

An important milestone on the horizon for #CometInterceptor: the hardware for the Avionic Test Bench (#ATB for insiders) is about to arrive in the Clean Room of OHB Italia S.p.A.
 
What makes this step in the development of the satellite so important?
This is the first #buildingblock for the actual development of the satellite’s #ProtoFlightModel, i.e. the flight model on which a partial or complete protoflight qualification test campaign is performed before flight.
 
The preliminary #tests of the critical functions of Comet Interceptor, to validate the procedures to be used on the flight model and to support operations during the operational life will be performed on the ATB.
 
The ATB is the first real operative test of the #satellitearchitecture, in which all the most critical phases of the mission and its resilience will be checked. In particular, the basic avionics here tested will be the #brain of the spacecraft. It will ensure the interaction between the large suite of #scientificinstruments onboard and the B1 / B2 #spaceprobes, making them into an integrated system.
 
Comet intreceptor is now in the mid of #PhaseC, where the project is being consolidated in order to have access to the Critical Design Review (#CDR), after which the company will receive the authorization to manufacture the actual flight model.
 
Being #PrimeContractor for such #ESA science mission is a great pride for OHB Italia S.p.A. More than 40 years of heritage in the space sector have allowed us to look more and more into the future and to assume ever greater responsibility for high-value missions like this one, both in terms of the #humanskills required and of the in-built #challengingcomplexity.
Onwards and upwards!
www.ohb-italia.it