Two power supplies for the PEP Plasma Physics Instrumentation (PI Stas Barabash, IRF, Kiruna, Sweden) have been developed by the Space Engineering Research Team of the ELKH Wigner Physics Research Centre. The integration of the first flight unit began at the University of Bern in early August. The PEP will be launched on its nine-year journey on an Ariane rocket in May 2022 as part of the ESA Juice project. The aim of the project is to research Jupiter and its moons.
The task of the two power supplies developed by the Hungarian group led by János Nagy, the NU_DCC and JDC_DCC (Nadir Unit Direct Current Converter, Jovian Plasma Dynamics and Composition Analyzer Direct Current Converter) is to provide power for two processor cards and four sensors. The integration started after the three shipped cards of the NU_DCC were installed in the mechanical frame. Based on the tests, so far all devices are operating properly. The integration will last until the end of September. The PEP's goal is to study the interaction between Jupiter's magnetosphere and its moons as well as the effect of the solar wind around Jupiter.
