Feeding Ariane 5 For Launch

The major task of fueling Europe’s Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) for Ariane 5’s upcoming milestone mission is entering its final phase at the Spaceport in French Guiana. During a multi-week procedure in the Spaceport’s S5 payload preparation building, the ATV has been loaded with 860 kg Russian-supplied UDMH (unsymmetrical dimehtylhydrazine) fuel and N2O4 (nitrogen tetroxide) oxidizer, which will be carried to the International Space Station for use in the station’s propulsion system. This was followed by the loading of pure oxygen aboard the ATV. The oxygen will be transferred to the space station for its crew’s breathable atmosphere.



The final fueling phase is now underway, with the ATV being topped off with approximately 2,100 kg of MMH (monomethylhydrazine) and 3,500 kg of MON (mixed oxides of nitrogen) for its own propulsion needs. When the fueling process is complete, ATV will be transferred to the Spaceport’s Final Assembly Building for mating with its Ariane 5 ES launch vehicle. The ATV’s liftoff mass of 19.4 metric tons represents one of the largest single payloads to be lofted by an Ariane 5. The ATV was developed in a European Space Agency-led program, and is a key re-supply spacecraft for the International Space Station’s continued operation. After being orbited by Ariane 5, it will deliver propellant, oxygen, equipment, systems, food and water to the orbital facility. Launch of the no. 1 ATV is set for the early morning hours of March 8 from Europe’s Spaceport. This will be Arianespace’s initial Ariane 5 mission of 2008, with a total of seven to eight flights of the workhorse vehicle planned this year.