This photo, taken on February 21, 1976, shows workers at NASA's Marshall Space Flight Center constructing a "simulated" residence for the purpose of testing the heating and cooling thermal control techniques developed for spacecraft environmental control systems.
This photo, taken on February 21, 1976, shows workers at NASA’s Marshall Space Flight Center in Huntsville, Ala. constructing a “simulated” residence. The purpose of this facility would be to test the heating and cooling thermal control techniques developed at Marshall for spacecraft environmental control systems. These 31 solar modules measuring 2 feet wide by twenty-one feet long were designed to capture three-fourths of the thermal energy needed for the simulated living quarters. Additionally, the system could furnish 3 tons of air conditioning in the summer and 20.5 kilowatts per hour of heat during the winter with enough surplus energy being stored for operation at night and during three consecutive cloudy days.
Image credit: NASA/MSFC