For the second time since April, the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Jules Verne ATV was used to raise the orbit of the International Space Station (ISS). A record boost from the 20 minute burn of the ATV‘s main engines successfully lifted the altitude of the 300-ton Station by around 7 km to an altitude of around 345 km above the Earth’s surface. The AT) was prepared for reboost operations by ATV Control Center (ATV-CC) in Toulouse, France. The maneuver provided a 4.05 m/s thrust lasting 20 minutes, using two of the ATV’s four main engines with an outstanding precision of 1 percent. While the automatic order was initiated by Moscow Control Center, two dozen controllers from ESA, CNES, and Astrium at ATV-CC closely monitored ATV’s subsystems throughout the crucial maneuver. Regular reboosts are needed to overcome the effects of residual atmospheric drag, which makes the Station lose about 100 m in altitude per day. Jules Verne ATV is scheduled to remain docked to the ISS until September. At the end of its mission, Jules Verne, loaded with up to 6.5 tons of material no longer required by the ISS, will undock and then burn up completely during a guided and controlled re-entry high over the Pacific Ocean.
ISS Gets A Boost From ESA’s ATV
For the second time since April, the European Space Agency’s (ESA) Jules Verne ATV was used to raise the orbit of the International Space Station (ISS). A record boost from the 20 minute burn of the ATV‘s main engines successfully lifted the altitude of the 300-ton Station by around 7 km to an altitude of around 345 km above the Earth’s surface. The AT) was prepared for reboost operations by ATV Control Center (ATV-CC) in Toulouse, France. The maneuver provided a 4.05 m/s thrust lasting 20 minutes, using two of the ATV’s four main engines with an outstanding precision of 1 percent. While the automatic order was initiated by Moscow Control Center, two dozen controllers from ESA, CNES, and Astrium at ATV-CC closely monitored ATV’s subsystems throughout the crucial maneuver. Regular reboosts are needed to overcome the effects of residual atmospheric drag, which makes the Station lose about 100 m in altitude per day. Jules Verne ATV is scheduled to remain docked to the ISS until September. At the end of its mission, Jules Verne, loaded with up to 6.5 tons of material no longer required by the ISS, will undock and then burn up completely during a guided and controlled re-entry high over the Pacific Ocean.
