Principles of Space Instrument Design (Cambridge Aerospace Series)

Rating:
Summary: It must work!
Review: Building an instrument that will go into space is a very specialised discipline that is well described by this book. Typically, you face requirements, the combination of which is quite unlike anything on Earth. The instrument must usually be able to withstand low temperatures, on the Kelvin scale, as well as survive direct unfiltered sunlight. If parts of the instrument cannot tolerate this, then you might design suitable shielding.

Also, will the instrument be orbiting Earth or will it go further out into space? If the former, then will it be inside the van Allen belts, or above? This dictates the amount of radiation shielding needed to prevent latchup in the electronics. Whereas, if the instrument is part of a spacecraft that will go into space, but not around a planet with a magnetosphere, then less shielding might be needed.

Oh, the instrument needs to survive the launch, of course. Depending on whether it is launched from a rocket or from the bays of a space shuttle, the mechanical requirements for this can vary.

The book goes into the above issues in detail; and many more. The overriding consideration is that repairs are usually impossible or prohibitively expensive and rare. Vital reading for anyone in the field.