EADS Astrium:
Astrium: ATV-5 “Georges Lemaître” en route to Kourou
7 October 2013 – The fifth and final European automated transfer vehicle (ATV) built by Astrium, called “Georges Lemaître”, is en route to the European spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.
As the systems leader of a European consortium, Astrium, Europe’s leading and the world’s second-ranking space company, was commissioned by the European Space Agency (ESA) to develop and also produce the ATV. In addition to the production of the ATV supply spacecraft, Astrium is also responsible for carrying out all the services related to the operation of the European sections of the International Space Station (ISS) under the ESA Exploitation Agreement. This includes mission preparation and execution, astronaut training, the on-going development of experiments and research facilities, the maintenance and logistics for all European ISS components and the ground stations, along with overseeing the communication system and data transfer.
“The ATV is Europe’s modern and reliable space transporter, equipped with unique systems for automated and autonomous rendezvous and docking,” said Bart Reijnen, Head of Orbital Systems & Space Exploration at Astrium Space Transportation, on the departure of the ATV “Georges Lemaître”.
“The technology, as well as the experience that Astrium has gained in the course of the development and production of the ATV, form an outstanding basis for the future, as our next challenge is to develop the European Service Module on behalf of ESA for the US “Orion” capsule,” continued Alain Charmeau, CEO of Astrium Space Transportation. “The spacecraft, with its crew of four or more astronauts, will be powered and supplied by an MPCV-ESM service module developed from the ATV. The decision by NASA to entrust a European manufacturer with such a vital element in the Orion programme clearly shows their confidence in the transatlantic partnership and in the capabilities of their European partners.”
Like its predecessors, ATV-5 “Georges Lemaître” is being transported by ship in three special containers from Bremen to the European spaceport in Kourou. At the same time, around 80 sea containers full of test equipment are joining it on its journey. Final assembly of the spacecraft will be carried out at the Kourou spaceport, including the Integrated Cargo Carrier (ICC), the solar panels and the Separation and Distancing Module (SDM) which forms the interface between the ATV and Ariane. The ATV will then undergo further extensive testing on site before being integrated as a payload into the fairing of an Ariane 5, then fuelled and connected. The launch of the “Georges Lemaître” is scheduled for June 2014.
The ATV-4 “Albert Einstein” is currently a component of the International Space Station. As part of its mission the ATV-4 has performed regular re-boosting manoeuvres to maintain the ISS’s nominal orbit. ATV-4 Albert Einstein will be undocked from the space station at the end of October and will then burn up during a controlled re-entry into the Earth’s atmosphere.
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