TMA Factory Integration and Test

Since early 2016, the LSST Telescope Mount Assembly (TMA) has been under construction in Asturfeito’s factory in Spain. Now, with the TMA nearly fully assembled, the Empresarios Agrupados, Asturfeito and Techniker Team is focused on the final set of factory tests before disassembling the system and shipping it to Chile. This video was recorded in the weeks before the official start of Factory Acceptance Testing, when LSST Director Steve Kahn, Project Manager Victor Krabbendam, TMA Technical Manager Shawn Callahan, and Systems Engineering Manager Brian Selvy traveled to Spain to review progress and discuss the schedule and preparations for these activities. The video includes clips of sample slewing movements where the TMA is rotating at close to maximum operating speed (on both azimuth and elevation axes) and stopping and settling at LSST’s demanding requirements. During the next month, a team of LSST engineering support staff members will travel to Spain to review the TMA’s pointing and control performance, mechanical and electrical systems, computer and camera refrigeration interfaces, and camera access. LSST Systems Engineering personnel will also be onsite towards the end of October to collaborate with the Contractor in conducting final tests and to determine the readiness of the TMA for its voyage to Chile.