A GIANT satellite test chamber has been safely delivered from Italy to Oxfordshire.

The Large Space Test Chamber is to be installed at the Harwell Campus in Didcot.

Weighing more than 98 tonnes, and 16m in length, the chamber was transported in sections on six lorries, accompanied by six police outriders and five support vehicles.

The convoy was one of the largest ever in the UK.

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The new chamber, amongst the giants in Europe, will help get larger satellites ready for launch and the harsh conditions of space.

The chamber can be heated to temperatures of beyond 100°C and cooled to as low as -180°C, using nitrogen cooled shroud panels.

Spacecraft up to the size of a minibus as well as fleets of shoebox-size satellites will be able to be tested.

A team of engineers will travel from Italy to complete the installation later in the year.