NASA’s Juno spacecraft has successfully repaired a damaged camera using an experimental technique that could benefit other space systems facing high radiation. The mission team used a process called annealing, which involves heating the material to reduce defects and repair damage, to revive the JunoCam imager after it began showing signs of radiation damage.
The issue arose during the spacecraft’s 47th orbit around Jupiter, when the camera started producing corrupted images. Despite attempts to fix the problem with processing techniques, nothing worked until the team tried a more extreme approach. By increasing the temperature of the camera’s heater, they were able to improve the image quality, capturing detailed views of Jupiter’s moon Io.
The experiment was a success, and the JunoCam imager is now functioning normally once again. This achievement has significant implications for future space missions, as it demonstrates that similar techniques can be used to repair damaged instruments and maintain spacecraft functionality in high-radiation environments.
NASA’s Juno mission is part of the agency’s New Frontiers Program and has provided valuable insights into Jupiter’s radiation environment. The lessons learned from this experiment will be applied to other NASA missions and potentially benefit commercial satellites as well.
Source: https://www.nasa.gov/missions/juno/nasa-shares-how-to-save-camera-370-million-miles-away-near-jupiter