LEFT: Red caps cover the three star trackers, which help the satellite determine its position in space. Not only do the satellites need to know
where they’re pointing, they also need to remain incredibly steady. They use six sophisticated flywheels to help stabilize against pressure from
solar radiation. When the wheels accumulate too much momentum, the satellites turn to good old-fashioned propulsion. ABOVE: Dozens of
companies from across the US built the satellite’s roughly 500 components, but they’re all assembled at Lockheed Martin’s facility in Littleton,
Colorado. Once built, the machine is run through a battery of tests—extreme heat and cold, intense vibrations, and a total vacuum—to make sure
it can handle the unforgiving environment of space. If it passes, the satellite is loaded onto a massive C-5 military transport plane for delivery to
Kennedy Space Center in Florida, to be launched into orbit 22,000 miles above the earth.
barré
(Barré)
#1