Based on a cooperation between ESA/ESTEC, Daimler-Benz Aerospace (DASA) and the High Voltage Laboratory of Darmstadt University of Technology (HV-Lab/DUT), in the past a new "Arc Tracking" Test of cables and wires for space applications has been developed. Though in the past "tracking" has been established as a popular term describing phenomena of an arc failure due to environmental surface stresses, this test should be better termed "Fault Arc Resistance Test", since the interaction of a fault arc, initiated with the help of an ignition wire, and the wire insulation of a cable bundle is the mam item of this test. In the meantime a multitude of "Arc Tracking" tests on cables with different AWG's has been performed. A wide data base is given by the variation of essential parameters such as the insulation material, the environmental conditions (vacuum, enriched oxygen and normal air) and the electrical conditions (voltage, arc current and time). The available test results improve the basic understanding of phenomena, responsible for fault arc behavior and degradation effects. From this, based on withstand criteria, data for the fault arc resistance of various wire insulations can be established. These results enable a ranking of insulation materials and can be used as a basis for the power system design of spacecraft. This paper aims at presenting obtained test results at large. Based on these test results a test method and relevant test evaluation criteria are proposed modifying and improving a previous draft, and being suitable for standardisation.
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