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Hendrik Thielemann
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Friday, 29 February 2008 |
 In a few days' time, Europe will send its own very first unmanned transport spacecraft to the International Space Station ISS - the ATV (Automated Transfer Vehicle) ‘Jules Verne'.
The ATV will supply the space station and its crew with food, water, oxygen, fuel and scientific experiments. The space transporter is scheduled to lift off from the European spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, at 05:23 CET on 8 March. Oerlikon Space played a key role in the development and construction of the space transporter. The Swiss space company supplied the structure for the ATV's propulsion module, the special racks for accommodating the payloads in the cargo bay, and the mechanism that will separate ‘Jules Verne' from the rocket at an altitude of 260 kilometres after launch.
Weighing over 20 metric tons, the ATV will be carried into space by a special version of the European launcher Ariane 5. Since Monday (25 Feb) the space transporter is encapsulated under a payload fairing which was also provided by Oerlikon Space. This Fairing will protect the space transporter against mechanical stress, frictional heat and contamination both prior to and during launch. The transfer vehicle will be separated from the launch rocket at an altitude of 260 kilometres, after which it will continue to fly towards the International Space Station using its own propulsion system. Five days after launch, ‘Jules Verne' is scheduled to dock fully automatically with Russia's Zvezda module on the ISS.
Once the docking manoeuvre is completed, the space transporter will be an integral part of the ISS and the astronauts will be able to enter the ATV's cargo hold in normal clothing without needing space suits. The supply ship will remain docked to the space station for about six months. During this time, the ISS crew will gradually unload the supplies and experiments. However, the space freighter has another important function: Because of the residual atmosphere in the orbital path of the ISS at an altitude of 400 kilometres, the space station is gradually decelerated and loses height. While the ATV is docked on, it will re-boost the ISS at regular intervals with the thrust from its own engines. On completion of the ATV mission, the astronauts will deposit their waste in the cargo hold of the ATV, which will finally be separated from the ISS and fly back to Earth. It will re-enter the Earth's atmosphere on a steep flight path and burn up.
Oerlikon Space played a central role in the development and construction of the ATV: The Zurich-based space company developed and built the structure for the space transporter's propulsion module. This complex aluminium structure is the backbone of the ATV. It comprises all the load-bearing components for accommodating the propulsion system and the flight controls (avionics). The structure also includes a protective layer that shields the ATV against the impact of small meteorites and collisions with space debris. Sub-contractors from Germany, Spain and Switzerland, plus a large number of suppliers, all helped to build the structure. This international programme provided Oerlikon with an opportunity to demonstrate its capabilities as a leading systems provider.
Oerlikon Space delivered this structure for Jules Verne a good five years ago. Subsequently, for several years, the ATV was put through its paces at ESTEC, ESA's space technology centre in Nordwijk, the Netherlands. The engineers simulated the extreme stresses which the space transporter will have to withstand on its journey through space, for instance the vibrations when the rocket leaves the launch pad and the tremendous temperature fluctuations to which the ATV will be exposed once in space.
Oerlikon Space is responsible not only for the structure, but also for the production of eight payload racks. Each of these cargo racks weighs 90 kilograms and is capable of accommodating up to 750 kilograms of payload. During launch, the lightweight rack structures have to absorb acceleration values equivalent to twelve times the Earth's acceleration.
Up to now, supply flights to the ISS were performed either by the U.S. space shuttles or by the unmanned Russian space transporter Progress. There is an urgent need for further transport vehicles, particularly if the shuttle flights are discontinued in 2010 as is currently planned. The ATV could bridge the gap left by the space shuttles - at least in terms of cargo transport. In future, an ATV carrying up to nine metric tons of cargo will fly to the ISS once every 12 to 18 months. At least four more ATV flights to the ISS are planned after Jules Verne. If the service life of the ISS is extended beyond the year 2017, the European space transporter might perform even more missions. While ‘Jules Verne' is still awaiting its flight to the ISS, the specialists at Oerlikon Space are already working on the second ATV flight model. However, no definite launch date has yet been specified for this second European space transporter. |
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Conferences & Events
Lithuanian Space Association is organizing the 2nd international space conference in Lithuania “Space Economy in the Multipolar World, SEMW 2011″. The conference is held on 16-18 November, 2011 in Vilnius. Venue: Radisson Blue Hotel Lietuva, Konstitucijos av. 20, Vilnius
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