vacuum pressure gauge in China's aerospace history
The astronauts will step out of the airlock hatch and take the first step of China's "space walk". Because space is in a vacuum, astronauts need to achieve internal and external balance of pressure in the airlock between the spacecraft and space before going to space and when returning to the spacecraft. When can we move forward? The vacuum pressure gauge hanging near the airlock cabin door is the basis for operation, which is specially tailored for the astronauts on this walk.
In the exhibition room of Hangzhou Yucheng Science &Technology Co., Ltd., the reporter saw a vacuum pressure gauge of this kind. The pressure gauge has a circular dial with a diameter of 26 cm. The dial has two circles of scales, which are yellow and white. There are two long and short pointers in the dial. The indication area of the short pointer is also yellow and white. "When the short pointer points to yellow, read the yellow data pointed by the long pointer; when the short pointer points to white, read the white data pointed by the long pointer." Zhang Xin, an engineer who participated in the development of the pressure gauge, pointed to the pressure gauge and said, "The space is in a vacuum state. When the astronauts go out of the cabin to work, the pressure gauge is also exposed in space. Therefore, its range must be large, and it can display different pressure conditions in space."
It is understood that the vacuum pressure gauge is the largest mechanical instrument used in the history of China's space flight, and the instrument used before is less than half of the vacuum pressure gauge. Why should the pressure gauge be so large? "This is tailored for astronauts." Zhang Xin explained: "The astronauts observe the outside world through the eyepiece on the helmet before leaving the cabin. In order to facilitate the astronauts to watch, the instrument is specially enlarged."
But the larger the instrument, the longer the pointer, the more difficult it is to grasp its accuracy. Moreover, after experiencing the high intensity and high frequency vibration of the rocket, the pressure gauge must be able to reach various accuracy indicators. In order to develop this pressure gauge, Zhang Xin has spent two years, experienced numerous tests, and finally successfully made this instrument with the largest overall size, the highest test magnitude, and the highest technical performance index requirements.
