NASA seeks vacuum test chamber for calibration of instrument headed to the International Space Station

GREENBELT, Md., - The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) have asked industry to provide the agency with a vacuum test chamber that can be mounted on a wheeled and adjustable height stand.

NASA is producing a neutral atom detector system, called RENA. The RENA instrument is scheduled to fly on the International Space Station in 2025.

The development, space environmental testing and calibration of the RENA instrument will require a custom sized vacuum test chamber, to be utilized in 2023.

The vacuum test chamber, notice ID 80NSSC224233Q2, must be a custom non-standard size in order to be small enough to fit in the REF, and have large enough internal dimensions, to do multi-angular testing of the RENA Instrument.

As part of that project, NASA is looking for industry to construct a vacuum test chamber with the following descriptions supplied by NASAGSFC Code 672:

• Width, Max outside width, 57 inch +/- .5 inch, mounted on the cart, rolling on wheels, lifting jacks can be removed.
• Height, Max 80 inch +/- 1 inch, mounted on the cart, rolling on wheels, lifting jacks, can be removed
• Length, Max 90 inch +/- 2 inch, mounted on the cart, rolling on wheels, lifting jacks, can be removed
• Inside Diameter (ID), 54 inch +/- .5 inch
• The chamber, and parts will be made of stainless steel as per materials called out in the drawings.
• Entrance Door, The chamber will have a door at one end of the chamber,
• Door Opening, ID can be 51 inch +/- .5inch,
• Door Seal, to be an elastomer seal as is standard in the vacuum industry 
• Ports flanged, with nipples, located and described as per drawing (203978-32) included in NASA's solicitation.

Contractors in the US that are advertising expertise in the technology and producing like chambers will be asked to bid on the task. Delivery is expected in June, 2023. For more information, please contact Tiffany Neal at [email protected]. Please click here to see the original solicitation and accompanying diagrams.