Packaging of Planetary Exploration Organic Composition Analyzer for NASA’s Europa Mission

Abstract

Our team has designed a spaceflight packaging structure for a micro gas chromatograph (GC), an organic compound analysis instrument currently being developed by Prof. Kurabayashi at the University of Michigan for NASA’s proposed lander mission to Europa, one of Jupiter’s moons. As the development of the GC continues, our stakeholders need a more robust structure to package the device and simulate the space environment. Using the design framework and methodologies learned in ME 450, our team has created and verified a solution to meet our stakeholder’s current needs. This report documents Team 33’s solution design process.