Assembly of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO)

A 30 Foot Cable for Laser Ranging

This fiber optic cable attaches to the back of the Laser Ranging Telescope at the end of the High Gain Antenna boom. It actually has three segments that connect to each other. The first two segments are used to transfer the lights from the back of the telescope to the bottom of the boom. The third segment is used to transfer the light from the bottom of the boom to the LOLA instrument. This cable was carefully handmade at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center in Greenbelt, MD.

Propulsion Tank Welding

A computer assists engineers who are welding together parts of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) during the summer of 2008 at Goddard Space Flight Center.

Building And Mating the Harness

Like human arteries and veins, the flight harness is crucial to the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter (LRO) mission. They were built, tested, and integrated at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

Putting It Together

It takes careful planning and strong teamwork to begin pulling all the LRO puzzle pieces together. This occured in the summer of 2008 at the Goddard Space Flight Center.

Reaction Wheels

Engineers installed the "reaction wheels" during the build-up of the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter in the clean room affectionately known as the "White House" at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.

Star Trackers

The star tracker guidance instruments were integrated on the Lunar Reconnaissance Orbiter in the "White House" clean room during the summer of 2008 at NASA's Goddard Space Flight Center.