A thermal vacuum chamber (TVC) is a vacuum chamber

Vacuum chamber

A vacuum chamber is a rigid enclosure from which air and other gases are removed by a vacuum pump. The resulting low pressure, commonly referred to as a vacuum, allows researchers to conduct physical experiments or to test mechanical devices which must operate in outer space...

 in which the radiative

Radiation

In physics, radiation is a process in which energetic particles or energetic waves travel through a medium or space. There are two distinct types of radiation; ionizing and non-ionizing...

 thermal environment is controlled.

Typically the thermal environment is achieved by passing liquids

Liquid

Liquid is one of the three classical states of matter . Like a gas, a liquid is able to flow and take the shape of a container. Some liquids resist compression, while others can be compressed. Unlike a gas, a liquid does not disperse to fill every space of a container, and maintains a fairly...

 or fluids

Fluid

In physics, a fluid is a substance that continually deforms under an applied shear stress. Fluids are a subset of the phases of matter and include liquids, gases, plasmas and, to some extent, plastic solids....

 through thermal shrouds for cold temperatures

Temperature

Temperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...

 or through the application of thermal lamps for high temperatures

Temperature

Temperature is a physical property of matter that quantitatively expresses the common notions of hot and cold. Objects of low temperature are cold, while various degrees of higher temperatures are referred to as warm or hot...

.

Thermal vacuum chambers are frequently used for testing spacecraft

Spacecraft

A spacecraft or spaceship is a craft or machine designed for spaceflight. Spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, earth observation, meteorology, navigation, planetary exploration and transportation of humans and cargo....

 or parts thereof under a simulated space

Outer space

Outer space is the void that exists between celestial bodies, including the Earth. It is not completely empty, but consists of a hard vacuum containing a low density of particles: predominantly a plasma of hydrogen and helium, as well as electromagnetic radiation, magnetic fields, and neutrinos....

 environment.

See also

• NASA's Space Power Facility
  Space Power Facility
  The Space Power Facility is a vacuum chamber built by NASA in 1969. It stands 122 feet high and 100 feet in diameter, enclosing a bullet-shaped space. It is the world's largest thermal vacuum chamber. It was originally commissioned for nuclear-electric power studies under vacuum conditions, but...
  
  (World's Largest thermal vacuum chamber), Ref: http://facilities.grc.nasa.gov/spf/index.html
• NASA's Spacecraft Propulsion Research Facility
  Spacecraft Propulsion Research Facility
  The Spacecraft Propulsion Research Facility is "significant in the development of the Centaur Rocket, which has launched some of America's most important space probes...
  
  (Very Large Thermal vacuum chamber), Ref: http://facilities.grc.nasa.gov/b2/index.html
• NASA's Cryogenic Propellant Tank Facility (K-Site) (Large thermal vacuum chamber supporting dust experiments), Ref: http://facilities.grc.nasa.gov/ksite/index.html
• ESA Large Space Simulator
• NASA Johnson Thermal Vacuum Chamber A
• NASA DynaVac 36" T/V Chamber
• Vacuum engineering
  Vacuum engineering
  Vacuum engineering deals with technological processes and equipment that use vacuum to achieve better results than those run under atmospheric pressure...
  
  
• Vacuum chamber
  Vacuum chamber
  A vacuum chamber is a rigid enclosure from which air and other gases are removed by a vacuum pump. The resulting low pressure, commonly referred to as a vacuum, allows researchers to conduct physical experiments or to test mechanical devices which must operate in outer space...
  
  
• Thermal Vacuum Chamber