The
Low Pressure Test Bed (LPTB) is a recently developed hypobaric (low
atmospheric pressure) chamber that has some unique capabilities not
found in normal hypobaric chambers. The LPTB chamber not only controls
atmospheric pressure but also temperature, relative humidity, and
air speed. The chamber is also designed for inserts that give the
capability of maintaining and measuring low level Volatile Organic
Compounds (VOCs). The chamber itself can accommodate different gas
mixtures to simulate different atmospheres. The chamber is located
in the Controlled Environment Laboratory (CEL) at Kennedy Space Center’s
Space Life Sciences Laboratory (SLSL). The laboratory maintains a
centralized Command, Monitoring and Data System (CMDS) for logging
and storing data collected from experiments or tests done in the LPTB.
It is used to support projects related to NASA ESMD, SMD, CEV, and
SOMA needs, as well as external industrial and academic users. This
chamber is ideally suited for testing of sensors and equipment at
reduced pressures.