On November 21st, 2022, at 13:44 CET (12:44 GMT), the Artemis spacecraft Orion powered its main thruster on the European Service Module to slingshot around the Moon, just five days after liftoff.
The European Service Module is powering Orion around the Moon and back, providing propulsion, temperature control, electricity as well as storage and delivery for essential supplies such as fuel, water and air.
This first Artemis mission is an uncrewed test mission, putting the spacecraft through its paces preparing to send astronauts forward to the Moon.
After liftoff at 07:47 CET (06:47 GMT, 01:47 local time) on November 16th, the European Service Module unfolded its 7-metre solar wings to start generating electricity.
The Orion spacecraft received a final boost from NASA’s Artemis rocket’s second stage and took 5 days to reach the Moon.
Orion, European Service Module and Earth during Artemis I
November 21st was a key moment for the NASA and ESA teams operating Orion.
At just a little more than 130 km from the lunar surface the main engine on the European Service Module – a repurposed Space Shuttle engine that is now on 20th spaceflight – fired for just under 150 seconds to push the spacecraft and head towards a lunar orbit using the Moon’s gravity to reduce fuel consumption.
“It has been an absolute joy to follow the mission so far,” says ESA’s Programme Manger for the European Service Modules, Philippe Deloo, “all the thousands of components inside have been working together flawlessly as designed, a testament to the international collaboration and prowess of European and US industry.”
The Orion spacecraft with European Service Module will fly farther from Earth than any human-rated vehicle has ever flown before. This video gives an overview of the first mission – without astronauts – for Artemis, focussing on ESA’s European Service Module that powers the spacecraft.The spacecraft will perform a flyby of the Moon, using lunar gravity to gain speed and propel itself 70 000 km beyond the Moon, almost half a million km from Earth – further than any human has ever travelled, where it will inject itself in a Distant Retrograde Orbit around the Moon.
On its return journey, Orion will do another flyby of the Moon before heading back to Earth.
The total trip will take around 20 days, ending with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean without the European Service Module – it separates and burns up harmlessly in the atmosphere.
The second Artemis mission will have a simplified flight plan with only a flyby of the Moon but with four astronauts. The third Artemis mission will see astronauts taken to the lunar surface.
The European Service Module is ESA’s contribution to NASA’s Orion spacecraft that will send astronauts to the Moon and beyond. It provides electricity, water, oxygen and nitrogen as well as keeping the spacecraft at the right temperature and on course.
The European Service Module has 33 thrusters, 11 km of electrical wiring, four propellant and two pressure tanks that all work together to supply propulsion and everything needed to keep astronauts alive far from Earth – there is no room for error.
Mission control for Orion is at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, USA, with European engineers on hand at all times to offer in-depth expertise on the finer details of the service module.
The mission evaluation room based at ESA’s technical heart in The Netherlands has personnel round the clock in direct communication with mission control.
The goal of the Artemis I mission is to stress-test the mission profile, the spacecraft, and the people operating it in preparation for flights with astronauts.
“Operationally, the spacecraft is performing perfectly and the international collaboration with this new spacecraft with new flight rules is great to see,” continues Philippe, “The teams across both sides of the Atlantic are showing exemplary skills, knowledge and teamwork leading humankind forward to the Moon.”
Inside the Orion crew capsule are multiple experiments to prepare for astronaut flights responsibly.
These include an ESA investigation recording the radiation doses an astronaut will receive and a German Aerospace Center, DLR, mannequin that is being used to test a radiation vest that astronauts could wear for protection during solar storms.
Orion is now following the Moon’s orbit around Earth and will officially enter lunar orbit on its tenth day of flight, November 25th, when the European Service Module performs the Distant Retrograde Insertion, firing its thrusters to brake Orion and keep flying around the Moon.
The mission is set to end with a splashdown in the Pacific Ocean on December 11th. Visit ESA’s Orion blog for frequent and more detailed updates.
ESA and NASA were working hand in hand before the first Artemis mission to the Moon through a series of joint mission simulations.
Teams based at the Erasmus Support Facility (ESF) at ESA’s ESTEC facility in The Netherlands, the German Space Operations Centre at ESA’s Columbus Control Centre in Oberphfaffenhofen and NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston combined their expertise in a series of exercises to ensure a successful launch.When it comes to simulations, it’s important that not everything goes perfectly right as it recreates – in real time – different stages of the mission to monitor the spacecraft’s position, propulsion, power, avionics and thermal properties.
The European team, consisting of 40 people from ESA and industry, applied their considerable expertise from working on the European Service Module (ESM) to any unexpected problems.
The ESM provides power for the Orion spacecraft and propels it along its orbit to the Moon.
The film includes soundbites from ESA Mission Integration & Performance Engineer: Guillaume Poinnier, ESA Erasmus Support Facility Manager: Kevin Pasay, ESA System Engineer; Olivier Mongrard and ESA ESM Engineer, François Trinquard.
Top image: View of the Moon taken during on flight day six of the uncrewed Artemis I mission showing Mare Orientale.
Source: ESA
