Touch down: European module arrives at Kennedy Space Center
After a 24-hour journey from Bremen, Germany with stops in Hamburg and Portsmouth, USA, the European Service Module landed yesterday at Kennedy Space Center in Florida.
30 NOV. 2015
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Once the Orion spacecraft has escaped the clutches of Earth’s gravity, it will rely on the engines of ESA’s service module to navigate and orient itself in space.
A total of 33 engines of three types provide thrust to manoeuvre the spacecraft on all axes.
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Space Shuttle thrusters
The main engine on the first mission is a repurposed Space Shuttle Orbital Maneuvering System engine that has flown in space before.
This engine provides 25.7 kN, enough to lift a van, and can swivel in pitch and yaw.
Eight thrusters are placed as a backup and provide 490 N each – enough to lift 50 kg on Earth. These are fixed at the bottom of the Service Module to provide orbit corrections and as a backup to the main engine.
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220 N engine
Lastly, 24 smaller engines grouped into six pods provide attitude control. In fixed positions, they can be fired individually as needed to move the spacecraft in different directions and rotate it into any position.
The propellant is provided by four 2000-liter tanks with 1-cm thick walls inside the service module: mixed oxides of nitrogen (MON) as oxidiser and monomethyl hydrazine (MMH) as fuel. The tanks will hold the fuel at a pressure of 25 bar with a total capacity of nine tonnes of fuel. Helium from two tanks push the propellants into the engines.
The European Service Module also kicks into action in the event of a launch abort. Orion sits underneath the Launch Abort System that propels the crew capsule up and away from danger if needed during the initial phases of launch, returning it to the ground by parachute. At altitude the Launch Abort System is jettisoned and if problems arise then the service module takes over and takes Orion from its launcher and steers it towards a safe return to Earth.
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Technical details:
- Three engine classes
A single Space Shuttle Orbital Maneuvering System engine provides 25.7 kN; gimballed in pitch and yaw
Eight fixed 490 N auxiliary thrusters, model R-4D-11 built by Aerojet
Reaction Control System 220 N engines, in six pods of four by ArianeGroup
- Four propellant tanks
2000 l capacity each
Diameter 1154 mm; height 2542 mm
Pressurised at 25 bar
Two with mixed oxides of nitrogen (MON)
Two with monomethyl hydrazine (MMH)
Nine tonnes fuel total capacity
- Surrounding structure
Two high-pressure helium tanks
Pressure-control systems
Sensor system with drive electronics
Propellant lines with shut-off valves
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Propellant tanks in the European Service Module test article
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Goodbye Europe, hello Moon: European Module ships soon
The European Service Module that will power and propel the Orion spacecraft on its first mission around the Moon will ship early next week from Bremen to the United States. It will take off in an Antonov An-124 aircraft in the early hours of 5 November and arrive at Kennedy Space Center in Florida, US on 6 November.Designed and manufactured in Italy and Germany, the powerful workhorse is Europe’s contribution to humanity’s return to the Moon.
Orion’s first Service Module integration complete
Last week at the Airbus integration hall in Bremen, Germany, technicians installed the last radiator on the European Service Module for NASA’s Orion spacecraft marking the module’s finished integration.ESA’s European service module will provide power, water, air and electricity to NASA’s Orion exploration spacecraft that will eventually fly beyond the Moon with astronauts. The European Service Module is now complete for Orion’s first mission that will do a lunar fly-by without astronauts to demonstrate the spacecraft’s capabilities.
Skeleton structure for Orion Moon module arrives for assembly
The structure for Europe’s second service module for NASA’s Orion spacecraft arrived at the Airbus clean room in Bremen, Germany, last week.
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Related links
ESA's Orion blog
Updates on our European Service Module for Orion
NASA Orion
NASA's Orion website
Orion at Airbus
Orion at Airbus
Orion service module on Flickr
Orion service module on Flickr
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