Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter in High Bay

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Caption:

Engineers and technicians at Lockheed Martin Space Systems, Denver, are building the Mars Reconnaissance Orbiter for NASA. Assembly and testing of the spacecraft are underway in preparation for launch from Cape Canaveral, Fla., in August 2005 aboard an Atlas V launch vehicle. In late October 2004, the spacecraft was moved from the High Bay clean room (shown here) into the Reverberant Acoustic Lab, where system environmental testing will continue through March 2005. The testing includes modal survey (which involves measuring spacecraft modes and frequencies), electronic compatibility testing, acoustic testing (which simulates sound vibrations that the spacecraft will experience during launch), shock and deployment tests, and thermal vacuum testing.

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