These are intensive days for Prisma’s technicians. This autumn’s tests in France are approaching and components must be put into place and basic tests performed. Krister Sjölander is however in his element.
”I have difficulty in seeing what ISN’T fun regarding this job!”

It is on the ground floor of the Swedish Space Corporation’s premises in Solna that the actual Prisma satellites are taking shape. There, in the new clean-room that was completed in time to accommodate Prisma, there are around ten technicians working with what looks to the untrained eye like a cross between a Meccano-construction and an advanced training-course in electronics. 
 
One of the people working in the clean-room is Krister Sjölander. He is the test-leader for the electrical systems onboard and is responsible for all of the electrical test-equipment that will be used before launching.
 
This means that he has contact with the project leaders, those responsible for the systems and the subcontractors. In this latter category are Omnisys in Gothenburg who are supplying the power-distribution system, Rdlabs in Italy who are supplying a radio for ground communication, LaTelec in France who are manufacturing all of the cabling onboard, as well as the French and German space boards CNES and DLR who are supplying instrumentation for navigation.
 
He also travels around to the subcontractors and inspects hardware, but he does much of the practical work also – screwing into place components, coupling together the electronics and soldering on circuitry chips.
 
“There aren’t so many of us, so we get to do a whole lot of different things. The job is varied to say the least. There is no such thing as a routine day!”
 
The relatively small and close-knit organisation also makes it possible to deal rapidly with the problems that are encountered.
 
“Certain faults can be rectified within a few hours, even software problems. In a larger organisation this might have taken weeks.”

Space-technician by mistake
The above are a few of the reasons that Krister Sjölander enjoys his job so enormously; which he certainly does, despite having slid into it on a banana skin. 
 
When Krister made his higher education application he wanted to be accepted onto KTH’s Vehicle engineering program; so that is where he applied. Or so he thought. When in due course the notification of acceptance arrived it said that he had been allocated a place on the Space Engineering program.
 
“I had never heard of that education program, I must have mixed up some of the numbers ... but it sounded exciting, so I said yes.”
 
Then when the second notification arrived he had a new shock.
 
“I had no idea that the course was located in Kiruna”, he says and laughs, “but I went there and got on exceptionally well!” 
 
Great opportunities for those who step forward
That was around ten years ago and Krister now has a large responsibility within the Prisma-project.
 
“It is an example of the difference between a relatively small company like the Swedish Space Corporation and the big satellite builders. With them there is a career ladder and it takes a considerable time before you reach a position of responsibility. With us there are greater opportunities to show your capabilities and to be given responsibility even as relatively young and new”. 
 
The high point of the job is when the project passes the finishing line. 
 
“To be there and launch something that one has laboured over for several years, to see that it works, that is an unbeatable feeling! On the whole however I have difficulty in seeing what it is that isn’t fun with this job”, he says and sniggers.
 
Important tests during the autumn
Just now the autumn’s tests at Intespace in France are looming ever larger. Before then the satellite must be assembled with all the parts onboard. Krister and his colleagues must also have found time for the basic-functions tests.
 
“It is not until September, but it seems awfully close ...”
 
At Intespace Prisma will go through a tough test program which will determine if the satellites are flight-worthy. Amongst other things they will be placed in an enormous vacuum chamber with an artificial sun in order to test the thermal balance. In the vacuum of space there is no air that can transport heat away, which places great demands on the satellite’s ability to tolerate and get rid of heat.
 
“Then both of the satellites will be put up onto a vibration platform which will expose them to shaking similar to that experienced during take-off. It is important that no internal resonance occurs in the satellite”.
 
They will also test the solar panels, the electromagnetic surroundings, test that the instruments don’t interfere with each other and that the satellites are balanced. The small satellite will also be subjected to a magnetic test, as it is going to be steered in space entirely by its interaction with the Earth’s magnetic field.

Kim Bergström