Latest Gaia Torus Stories

At the end of June the Gaia mission passed a significant milestone when the 17 individual segments of the torus, a key structural element of the spacecraft, were brazed into one coherent structure at the BOOSTEC premises at Bazet near Tarbes, France. The successful results of this process were concluded after a Mandatory Inspection Point of the torus on Monday July 20, 2009.The 3-meter diameter, quasi-octagonal torus, which will support the two Gaia telescopes and the focal plane assembly, is...