Safety testing program for the Galileo mission radioisotope thermoelectric generator

The major design requirement for any space nuclear power system is to minimize the potential for interaction of the radioactive materials with Earth's population and environment. All previous space power systems were launched on expendable launch vehicles (ELVs), so the design emphasis for the GPHS was on surviving the most severe ELV accident environments (launch pad explosion and solid propellant fire) and on surviving accident environments resulting from spacecraft failure (reentry and land impact). 14 refs., 4 figs., 2 tabs