A System Safety Success: The Midcourse Space Experiment
Abstract
At 5:27 am Pacific Daylight Time on April 24, 1996, a McDonnell Douglas Delta II launch vehicle lifted off from Vandenberg Air Force Base (VAFB), California. On board was the Ballistic Missile Defense Organization's (BMDO) Mid-course Space Experiment (MSX). The MSX spacecraft was built by the Johns Hopkins University's Applied Physics Laboratory (JHU/APL) to study the phenomenology of target detection and tracking. This spacecraft program provided the authors with the opportunity to become involved with complex design, ground, and operational safety concerns in dealing with the use of liquid and solid hydrogen. The MSX program suffered a potentially dangerous failure in the plumbing associated with the hydrogen cryostat used in the spacecraft's main telescope, the Spatial Infrared Imaging Telescope (SPIRIT III). This paper discusses the failure and the adjustments made to the program. Had it not been for the thorough analysis and preventive systems put in place prior to performing ground operations, this leak could have resulted in a catastrophic loss.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Jan 01, 1998
- Accession Number
- ADA355711
Entities
People
- Clayton A. Smith
- Joyce A. Mcdevitt
Organizations
- Johns Hopkins University