Power / Thermal / Budgets
Thermal Hot / Cold Case
Use a simplified hot/cold case model: environment, internal heat, and limits — without claiming flight thermal analysis.
- Time estimate
- 20–30 min
- Complexity
- developing
- Maturity
- pilot ready
- Simulator readiness
- implemented
- Software available now
- Implemented — simplified thermal risk / margin statement at `/twin/learn/activities/budget_thermal_balance`. Not a multi-node thermal solver.
Student path
- Pick environment emphasis (sun-heavy vs eclipse-heavy vs mixed).
- Adjust payload and radio duty; toggle survival heater.
- Read the risk flag and the first engineering check line.
- Copy evidence — explicitly not FEA or Thermal Desktop.
Learning outcomes
Student can explain when a simplified model flags hot or cold risk and what an engineer would check first (teaching-grade).
- Relate internal dissipation (payload/radio) to heat that must be rejected.
- Explain one cold-case scenario when eclipse or low duty reduces dissipation.
- State what information a flight thermal analysis would need beyond this teaching model.
Concept primer
Use a simplified hot/cold case model: environment, internal heat, and limits — without claiming flight thermal analysis.
Open the Thermal Hot / Cold Case lab at `/twin/learn/activities/budget_thermal_balance` — qualitative teaching model (not FEA, not Thermal Desktop).
List one hot-case failure mode and one cold-case failure mode for a battery or radio component.
Interactive lab
Teaching-grade software activity slot — not a flight simulator or certified propagator.
Interactive lab
Hot case vs cold case (teaching)
A qualitative balance between internal dissipation and simplified cooling. Tune duties and heater — not a thermal solver.
Outputs
Cold-case risk (toy)
Cold-case concern: low dissipation or long eclipse may let Battery pack drift toward its -5 °C lower bound — verify heater policy and survival modes (teaching statement).
Local self-check
Assessment (practice only)
Use this as a self-check and discussion starter. It is local-only and not a grade.
Optional: attaches a local summary (completed / quick checks / checklist count).
Quick check
Multiple choice self-check
This is a local self-check to support discussion. It is not a grade.
Quick check: Why can BOTH overheating and overcooling be risks?
Quick check: In this teaching model, what should you verify first when a limit is threatened?
Discussion prompt
Short answer (local only)
Write notes for yourself or your group. Nothing is submitted.
Short answer: Give one hot-case concern and one cold-case concern for a radio or battery component.
Checklist
Local checklist self-check
Use this to verify you covered key ideas. Nothing is submitted.
Checklist: Thermal hot/cold readiness (self-check)
0 / 4 checked
Local summary
Assessment summary (practice only)
Completion
0 / 4 sections complete
Quick checks
0 / 2 correct
Shown only to support self-check.
Checklist
0 / 4 items checked
Reminder
Local-only practice summary. Not a grade and not submitted anywhere.
What this preview is / is not
Assessment engine v0 boundary note
- Student view (local practice): use this as a self-check and discussion starter.
- Local-only preview/practice: your answers are not submitted.
- No backend, no accounts, no roster, and no LMS integration.
- Not a grade. No credential or official scoring is implied.
- Teacher visibility into student answers is not implemented in MVPF8.
- Evidence runtime engine arrives in Phase 9 (not in this preview).
Capture
Evidence capture (local-only)
Capture what you did, what changed, what you observed, and how you explain it. This stays in your browser unless you copy/share it manually.
Selected inputs
- Environment mode: mixed
- Payload duty: 40%
- Radio duty: 20%
- Survival heater: Off
- Component focus: battery
Generated outputs
- Dissipation score (unitless toy): 39.0
- Cooling path score (unitless toy): 61.5
- Risk flag: cold
- Thermal margin statement: Cold-case concern: low dissipation or long eclipse may let Battery pack drift toward its -5 °C lower bound — verify heater policy and survival modes (teaching statement).
- First engineering check: Confirm eclipse timeline, heater availability, and whether survival loads keep minimum temperatures.
Checklist
Evidence checklist
0/4 checked
Evidence artifact (local-only)
Thermal Hot / Cold Case
Captured: 2026-05-16T07:38:33.037Z · Level: high_school · Track: budgets_resources
Summary
Copyable class summary
Copy a readable summary for class notes, or copy JSON for a structured record. Local-only: nothing is submitted.
Evidence artifact (v1) Activity: Thermal Hot / Cold Case Track: budgets_resources Learner level: high_school Captured: 2026-05-16T07:38:33.037Z Mission brief: Qualitative hot/cold screening — not multi-node thermal analysis or FEA. Selected inputs: - Environment mode: mixed - Payload duty: 40% - Radio duty: 20% - Survival heater: Off - Component focus: battery Generated outputs: - Dissipation score (unitless toy): 39.0 - Cooling path score (unitless toy): 61.5 - Risk flag: cold - Thermal margin statement: Cold-case concern: low dissipation or long eclipse may let Battery pack drift toward its -5 °C lower bound — verify heater policy and survival modes (teaching statement). - First engineering check: Confirm eclipse timeline, heater availability, and whether survival loads keep minimum temperatures. Checklist: - [ ] Named environment + duty + heater effects - [ ] Interpreted risk flag as teaching-grade - [ ] Wrote first engineering check - [ ] Avoided claiming flight thermal sign-off Observations: (not provided) Reflection: Which real-world data would you demand before trusting a temperature prediction? Model boundary note: Local-only teaching model — not flight-grade EPS, thermal, or mass analysis; no battery certification claims; evidence is not submitted anywhere and is not a grade. Policy reminder: - Local-only capture. Not submitted anywhere. Not a grade.
Evidence capture
Expected outputs learners should be able to show after the lab (Phase 9 evidence engine preview available).
- Selected environment and duty/heater settings
- Hot/cold/marginal risk flag and component limit focus
- First engineering check statement
- Local self-check summary and copied evidence text
Reflection
Pick sun / eclipse / mixed context, set payload and radio duty, toggle heater; read risk flag and first-check guidance.
Responses are not persisted in this preview unless a specific activity component adds storage later.
Assessment / quick check
Why can both overheating and overcooling be mission risks for the same spacecraft?
Teacher notes
Stress that both overheating and overcooling can happen; vacuum changes how heat leaves the spacecraft.
Teacher use
Bridge from Track 3 energy conversation: higher duty cycles add dissipation. Contrast classroom intuition with vacuum + radiation-dominated cooling.
Next activity
Suggested progression from the mission learning path. Links avoid missing activity routes.