The CUBIC Instrument

This is a photograph of the CUBIC instrument mounted on top of the SAC-B satellite. It was taken in the clean room of INPE in Sao Jose dos Campos, Brazil, where the SAC-B satellite was tested in May - July 1995 prior to launch. The "proboscis" pointing slightly to the left of the viewer holds the aperture (the small square black hole) that defines the instrument field of view. The large conical object near the center of the picture is one of the satellite antennae. The white plate on top of CUBIC is the cooling plate that radiates heat from the CCD camera to space. The rest of the instrument is covered with gold-colored Multi-Layer Insulation to isolate it from the extreme temperatures of the space environment.

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