N° 24–2007: First ATV leaves Europe to prepare for launch from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana
15 June 2007
Time to bid farewell to the most sophisticated spacecraft ever built in Europe. The Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) will leave the European Space Agency’s ESTEC establishment in the Netherlands in mid-July and be shipped to Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. There, it will start its launch preparation campaign which will last several months, before being launched by Ariane 5 not earlier than mid-January 2008 and (after a 12 to 15 day journey) docking automatically with the International Space Station using its own propulsion and navigation systems.
To mark the upcoming departure of this first ATV, the Jules Verne, ESA is inviting media representatives interested in covering this event to attend a Media Day on 28 June at ESTEC. This will not only feature an opportunity to see the Jules Verne in its clean room at the test centre there but also presentations by experts from ESA and industry on the latest status of the project. The programme also includes ATV photo and video opportunities as well as opportunities to interview various experts.
Media representatives wishing to attend the ATV Media Day are kindly requested to fill out the attached accreditation form and return it by fax to the ESA-ESTEC Communication Office + 31 71 565 5728 by Tuesday 26 June at the latest.
Note for editors:
The ATV European resupply spaceship is a crucial element of the International Space Station (ISS) programme. It will deliver refuelling propellant for the Station’s own propulsion system, as well as air and drinking water for the crew. It will also transport science experiments and related hardware, thus making a major contribution to ISS logistics. The ATV will also give the Space Station an orbit reboost to overcome the effects of residual atmospheric drag. After serving for six months as a work space extension of the ISS, its final task after undocking will be to dispose of waste during a guided and controlled destructive reentry into the atmosphere high over the Pacific.
For more information:
Rosita Suenson
ESA-ESTEC Communication Office
Communication Department
+ 31 71 565 3007
Rosita.Suenson@esa.int
Markus Bauer
ESA Communication Officer for the Directorate of Human Spaceflight, Microgravity and Exploration
Communication Department
Phone: + 31 71 565 6799
Markus.Bauer@esa.int
ATV Media Day
28 June 2007
Erasmus Centre
ESA/ESTEC
Noordwijk, The Netherlands
Programme
0945
Doors open
1000
Welcome
ATV – Preparing for Exploration:
Daniel Sacotte, ESA Director of Human Spaceflight, Microgravity and Exploration
1015
ATV - European Resupply Vessel:
John Ellwood, ATV Project Manager, ESA Directorate of Human Spaceflight, Microgravity and Exploration
1030
ATV – Technological masterpiece:
Nicolas Chamussy, Astrium ATV Programme Director
1045
ATV – Role for Human Spaceflight:
Jean-Francois Clervoy, Astronaut and ATV project advisor
1100
Questions & Answers
Coffee
Transfer to ATV at Test Centre
1130
ATV visit, photo and video opportunities, opportunity to conduct interviews at the test facilities
1300
Buffet in the Erasmus High Bay with interview opportunities
1500
End of programme
ATV Media Day
28 June 2007
ESA/ESTEC
Surname:__________________ First name:_______________________
Media organisation represented: _____________________________
Address:_____________________________________________________
____________________________________________________________
Telephone:_______________ Mobile: __________________________
Fax: ______________________Email: ___________________________
( ) will attend
( ) will not attend
Please return this form by 26 June to:
ESA/ESTEC
Communication Office
Fax. + 31 71 565 57 28
For further information:
ESA - Media Relations Service
Tel: +33.(0)1.5369.7299
Fax: +33.(0)1.5369.7690