AEROJET PRESS RELEASE
SACRAMENTO, Calif., March 13 /PRNewswire-FirstCall/ — Aerojet, a GenCorp NYSE: GY company, announced today that Jules Verne — the first of the European Automated Transfer Vehicles (ATV) — has successfully launched aboard the European expendable launch system, Ariane 5, out of Kourou in French Guiana.
For the mission, Aerojet delivered four R-4D main engines that will be used to accomplish the early circularization maneuvers and docking simulations. NASA announced that the ATV reached its preliminary orbit about nine minutes after liftoff. When preliminary orbit was achieved, the ATV engines fired for eight minutes to place the spacecraft into an elliptical orbit. About 45 minutes later, a second engine firing circularized the ATV’s orbit prior to spacecraft separation.
Once in orbit, the ATV will undergo four weeks of extensive systems tests, including two approaches to the station to simulate rendezvous and contingency techniques.
Continue reading ‘Aerojet Celebrates Launch of Jules Verne’
ESA engineers say that a problem with the Automated Transfer Vehicle Jules Verne has been fixed. The vehicle is headed for the International Space Station with supplies and equipment for the crew.
New Scientist reports that shortly after launch, an electronics box aboard the freighter detected a pressure difference between two fuel pipes. The box routed fuel through three other systems, resulting in the shutdown of one of the ATV’s four engines and seven of its 28 thrusters. The box then shut itself off as a precaution. When engineers turned the box back on Tuesday, everything was functioning normally.
ESA officials said that even with the anomaly, the ATV was capable of rendezvousing and docking the space station.
The European Automated Transfer Vehicle Jules Verne has developed a glitch in its propulsion system. Sensors aboard the cargo vessel detected a difference in pressure between the oxidizer and the fuel systems.. The problem has shut down seven of the 28 attitude control jets and one of the vehicle’s four engines.
Engineers are assessing the problem and say they are not worried. They are confident the ATV will be able to successfully rendezvous and dock with the International Space Station, where it will delivery cargo and supplies to the crew.
The BBC has a full story, as does Spaceflight Now.
After a flawless launch on Sunday, ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle is safely on orbit and beginning its pursuit of the International Space Station. The robotic spacecraft will deliver 7 metric tons of supplies and equipment to the astronauts on the orbital outpost.
ESA reports the ATV, dubbed Jules Verne, is functioning normally. “All navigation systems onboard, the star-trackers, the GPS system are working nominally and the solar arrays, which deployed very smoothly, are delivering full power. However the spacecraft on board computers detected a slight difference in pressure between the oxidizer and the fuel that compose the propellant. This caused the ATV to immediately switch over to the second of four propulsion chains, as it is designed to do.”
There is a lot of mission coverage out there. Here are a few links you might find useful:
ESA ATV Blog: All the latest updates as well as slide shows, launch videos and background information.
Space.com
Reuters
Arianespace Press Release
The Ariane 5 lifted off successfully at 04:03 UT Sunday from the European Spaceport in French Guiana carrying ESA’s Automated Transfer Vehicle. The robotic spacecraft, dubbed Jules Verne, is bound for the International Space Station to deliver 7 metric tons of equipment and supplies.
The spacecraft is scheduled to dock with ISS several weeks from now after the space shuttle Endeavour completes its construction mission. Endeavour is schedule for launch on March 11 and is schedule to stay 16 days at the station.
ATV will conduct system checks for several weeks, including two approaches to the orbital outpost as well as “escape” maneuvers to back away from the station. The tests are designed to verify software and prevent any collision with ISS.
“The two approach tests will give ESA, NASA and Rocket Space Corp. Energia time to critically examine the performance of ATV’s systems,” said Brian Smith, NASA’s lead ATV flight director. “ATV must pass these tests before it will be allowed to initiate the final rendezvous and docking. The tests have been designed to verify the systems vital to ensuring the safety of the ISS and its crew perform as expected.”
With Europe’s Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) set to carry supplies to the International Space Station this weekend, Ian Sample questions whether the Great Britain is being left behind during this next phase of space exploration. Britain made no significant contribution to the ATV, which eventually could be upgraded to fly humans in space. Sampled is worried that Britain will be an insignificant player as the world’s space programs begin sending humans to the Moon and beyond.
Flight Global has a report about a recent meeting held by NASA chief Mike Griffin and Italian Space Agency President (ASI) Giovanni Fabrizio Bignami to help map out an international human exploration strategy.
The story says that U.S. and Italian officials agreed that Europe needs autonomous human access to space. They also agreed that studies of nuclear propulsion and the orbital assembly of Mars spacecraft are necessary.
Italy has been heavily involved in human spaceflight, providing two nodes for the International Space Station as well as making major contributions to ESA’s Columbus module and the Automated Transfer Vehicle.
The European Space Agency has posted an animation of the flight of it Automated Transfer Vehicle Jules Verne. The video shows the launch, docking, and de-orbiting of the robotic cargo spacecraft, which is set for launch to International Space Station on March 9. The ATV can deliver 7.2 metric tons of cargo and supplies to ISS.
Ever wondered what the differences are between Europe’s ATV, SpaceX’s Dragon, and Orbital Sciences Cygnus spacecraft? If so, Taylor Dinerman has a few answers over at The Space Review.
All three vehicles are designed to ferry cargo to the International Space Station. ESA’s ATV is set to make its debut later this month; Dragon and Cygnus are commercial alternatives being developed by private industry with seed money from NASA’s COTS program. Dinerman takes a look at each vehicle’s capabilities and their prospects.