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Goddard Engineering and Technology Directorate

Thermophysical Properties Test Lab 

Image showing Dr. Ed Canavan (bottom right), Dr. Chullhee Cho (top right), and Emma Cueva (left) assembling a cryostat for cryogenic thermophysical properties measurement of advanced space materials Goddard's cryogenics and fluids engineers possesses unique capabilities that generate collaboration requests from NASA centers as well as external agencies for investigating the properties of novel space materials under cryogenic and room temperature conditions
Image showing Dr. Ed Canavan (bottom right), Dr. Chullhee Cho (top right), and Emma Cueva (left) assembling a cryostat for cryogenic thermophysical properties measurement of advanced space materials. Credit NASA

Enabling Precision Thermal Property Testing for Space Missions and Engineering Projects

ETD’s Thermophysical Properties Lab Test facility provides Thermal Conductivity, Effective Emissivity and CTE (Coefficient of Thermal Expansion) measurements on test articles in between the temperatures of 4K and 300K. Following a series of requests by the James Webb Space Telescope (JWST) project for testing of materials, the facility was stood up in 2016. Since then it has provided test support to projects such as Roman Space Telescope (RST), Visible Infrared Imaging Radiometer (VIIRS), SPHEREx and NASA Engineering and Safety Center (NESC) Cryogenics Technical Discipline Teams (TDT) initiatives. 

The Thermophysical Properties Test Lab is managed by ETD’s Instrument Systems and Technology Division (ISTD). Contact ISTD for more information.