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An Overview of NASA Space Cryocooler Programs--2006Mechanical cryocoolers represent a significant enabling technology for NASA's Earth and Space Science Enterprises. Many of NASA's space instruments require cryogenic refrigeration to improve dynamic range, extend wavelength coverage, or enable the use of advanced detectors to observe a wide range of phenomena--from crop dynamics to stellar birth. Reflecting the relative maturity of the technology at these temperatures, the largest utilization of coolers over the last fifteen years has been for instruments operating at medium to high cryogenic temperatures (55 to 150K). For the future, important new developments are focusing on the lower temperature range, from 6 to 20 K, in support of studies of the origin of the Universe and the search for planets around distant stars. NASA's development of a 20K cryocooler for the European Planck spacecraft and a 6 K cryocooler for the MIRI instrument on the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) are examples of the thrust to provide low-temperature cooling for this class of future missions.
Document ID
20070023746
Acquisition Source
Jet Propulsion Laboratory
Document Type
Preprint (Draft being sent to journal)
External Source(s)
Authors
Ross, Ronald G., Jr.
(Jet Propulsion Lab., California Inst. of Tech. Pasadena, CA, United States)
Boyle, R. F.
(NASA Goddard Space Flight Center Greenbelt, MD, United States)
Date Acquired
August 23, 2013
Publication Date
June 14, 2006
Subject Category
Spacecraft Instrumentation And Astrionics
Meeting Information
Meeting: International Cryocooler Conference
Location: Annapolis, MD
Country: United States
Start Date: June 14, 2006
Distribution Limits
Public
Copyright
Other
Keywords
cryogenics
cryocooler

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