Paper 13094-112
Thermal architecture for a cryogenic super-pressure balloon payload: design and development of the Taurus flight cryostat
Abstract
We describe the cryogenic system being developed for Taurus: a super-pressure balloon-borne microwave polarimeter scheduled to fly in 2027. The Taurus cryogenic system consists of a 660L liquid helium cryostat which achieves a base temperature of ≤100mK with the help of a capillary-fed superfluid tank and a closed cycle dilution refrigerator. The main tank is supported with fiberglass flexures and is encased in two layers of vapor-cooled shields which allow Taurus to make full use of the extended flight time offered by the super-pressure balloon platform. The Taurus cryostat is projected to hold for over 50 days while weighing under 1000lbs. We present the design, testing, and thermal analysis of the Taurus cryogenic systems.
Presenter
Simon Tartakovsky
Princeton Univ. (United States)
Simon Tartakovsky is a graduate student at Princeton university working primarily on developing the Taurus telescope. He is an alumni of the successful SPIDER II telescope which launched on an ULDB balloon out of Antarctica in 2022. Simon is currently leading the development of the Taurus cryostat and will present the cryogenic architecture of Taurus