Payload System Design, Integration, and Verification Challenges for an Academically Centered Flight Instrument Development

The single-instrument payload for the SPHEREx (Spectro-Photometer for the History of the Universe, Epoch of Reionization, and Ices Explorer) mission was designed, integrated, and tested by an institutionally and culturally diverse team forged from academic, industry, and NASA lab environments. In this paper we describe the challenges encountered and solutions adopted through the implementation of the SPHEREx payload. In particular, we describe the approach that guided the design phase and how, during the integration, testing, and verification phases, and under the pressures of a global pandemic, the strengths of each team were leveraged.