The Clean Room

A clean room is a sterile environment in which a satellite is constructed. The TERRIERS satellite was integrated, tested, and housed in a clean room on the 5th floor of the College of Arts and Sciences during its three-year stay at Boston University. The instruments onboard TERRIERS are very sensitive to dust and degrade when exposed to oil or humidity. A clean room maintains a constant temperature and humidity, eliminates dust, and protects the satellite during its development, construction and testing.

Additionally, the floor of a clean room is constructed to avoid a build up of static electricity. Members of the TERRIERS team wore protective gear at all times inside the clean room. This special clothing is worn to eliminate dirt and dust from their clothing, flakes from their hair, and to keep the satellite away from human breath. A clean room provides the necessary controlled environment to ensure that TERRIERS, or any satellite, is in optimal condition at the time of launch.