The Earth Observation Characterisation Facility at Imperial College, overseen by the Space and Atmospheric Physics Group, is a resource for the development of instrumentation across a broad range of research applications. This 83m2 facility has been recently commissioned and was opened by UK Government Chief Scientific Advisor Sir Robert May in 1998. While it supports a full range of active characterisation projects for Blackett Laboratory physicists, it can also work with non-College partners in a range of technical tasks. These can be organised with the EOCF either as a dedicated facility accessible to external users, or contract work can be undertaken by Blackett Laboratory personnel using the EOCF facilities.
The facility continues to evolve with a commitment to incorporating the most modern equipment and techniques. Users of the facility have access to expertise with the Department of Physics to assist with solutions in the areas of optics, electronics and mechanical design.
The EOCF would like to thank NASA and the crews of Apollo 7 and Apollo 17 for the images of Earth used in this web site.
At the heart of the facility is the Vacuum Calibration Chamber (VCC). Designed from the ground up to support the calibration of space-based radiometers, this chamber offers the highest standards of precision and hydrocarbon-free cleanliness. The quality of the vacuum environment is assured through constant monitoring of trace gas species from 1 to 200 AMU using our quadrupole mass spectrometer.
Within the chamber is a table capable of 300mm of vertical travel and continuous 360 degree rotation, with motion resolution of 0.05mm and 0.5 degrees respectively. Load capacity is 30kg. The table can be used to point a spectrometric or radiometric device at any of the main source ports, or through a window which is aligned with the cleanroom optical worksurface. The table is computer controlled via GPIB.
The EOCF has an access-controlled cleanroom with 28m2 of usable floor area and a volume of 60m3 maintained at class 1000 (class G). The cleanroom air is completely changed once per minute, making it safe for activities involving large amount of inert gas discharge (e.g. purging during spectral absorption measurements).
The facility owns four high-grade optical worksurfaces (one inside the cleanroom, one in the main lab and two in the satellite laboratory) and maintains a core inventory of bench optics. The table decks are Melles Griot 07OTQ501 models measuring 1.25m by 2.0m. Deck material is ferromagnetic stainless steel. Dynamic deflection coefficient, relative table motion and deflection under load specifications are all excellent. The support systems are self-levelling active vibration isolation systems with a load capacity of 2500kg. The table deck will be relevelled for an offset load of up to 250kg. Vertical and horizontal resonant frequencies are extremely low, being on the order of 1Hz.