Daily Archives: June 17, 2013

Space Station Crew Talks with Seattle Area Students About Life On-Orbit
Aboard the International Space Station, Expedition 36 Flight Engineers Chris Cassidy of NASA and Luca Parmitano of the European Space Agency described the da...

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Space Station Crew Talks with Seattle Area Students About Life On-Orbit - Video

Space Station Live: Microbiome Experiment
NASA Public Affairs Officer Lori Meggs talks with Microbiome experiment Investigator Mark Ott to learn more about this research taking place aboard the Inter...

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Space Station Live: Microbiome Experiment - Video

ScienceCasts: Strange Flames on the International Space Station
Visit http://science.nasa.gov/ for breaking science news. Researchers experimenting with flames onboard the International Space Station have produced a stran...

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ScienceCasts: Strange Flames on the International Space Station - Video

PARIS Europe's fourth Automated Transfer Vehicle pulled into port at the International Space Station on Saturday (June 15), delivering a hefty load of supplies, including rocket fuel, experiments, food and clothing for the lab's six-person crew.

The 20-ton spaceship, named for physicist Albert Einstein, docked with the space station's Russian service module at 10:07 a.m. EDT (1407 GMT) after a glacial automated approach guided by high-tech lasers and cameras.

The docking occurred about 20 minutes behind schedule after engineers at the ATV control center in Toulouse, France, took extra time to reset navigation parameters on the unmanned supply craft. [See Photos of Europe's ATV Robotic Space Cargo Ships]

"Thanks to the ground teams," Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano posted on his Twitter account. "ATV docking was really easy. Now the hard job begins: unpacking everything!"

The cargo ship blasted off on an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana on June 5, beginning a 10-day pursuit of the space station. A Russian Progress supply freighter left the space station Tuesday, clearing the aft port of the Zvezda service module for the arrival of the Albert Einstein spacecraft.

The ATV hauled seven tons of payload to the space station, including 5,465 pounds (2,479 kilograms) of supplies stowed inside the craft's cargo cabin. The materials include food tiramisu, lasagna, parmesan and other meals along with experiments, clothing and spare parts.

"With the fourth ATV now ready to support and supply the space station with essential supplies and scientific experiments, ESA again proves itself to be a reliable partner in the international station upon which the future can be developed," said Jean-Jacques Dordain, director general of the European Space Agency.

Astronauts will open the hatches between Zvezda and the cargo ship Monday, with unpacking of the ATV's pressurized compartment due to begin Tuesday. Technicians loaded the ATV's cargo hold with 209 bags containing 1,400 items, which will take several weeks for the crew to move and store inside the space station.

Most of the supplies are for NASA, which uses resupply craft owned by Europe and Japan in a barter arrangement. The European Space Agency and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency pay for their share of the space station's operating costs through cargo services instead of cash.

ESA says each ATV mission costs 450 million euros, or about $600 million.

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European Cargo Ship 'Albert Einstein' Docks at Space Station

June 17, 2013

Image Caption: Europe's supply ferry ATV Albert Einstein on approach to the International Space Station. Credit: ESA

ESA Press Release

ESAs fourth Automated Transfer Vehicle, Albert Einstein, completed a flawless rendezvous with the International Space Station on June 15 when it docked smoothly with orbital outpost at 14:07 GMT (16:07 CEST).

The Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) is now connected to the Space Station.

Bravo Europe, bravo ESA, bravo ATV. Thank you Member States, thank you industry, thank you CNES, thank you Russian partner, commented Jean-Jacques Dordain, Director General of ESA.

With the fourth ATV now ready to support and supply the Space Station with essential supplies and scientific experiments, ESA again proves itself to be a reliable partner in the international station upon which the future can be developed.

The 20-ton ferry, the heaviest spacecraft ever launched by Europe, flew autonomously and docked with the 420-ton complex with a precision of a few cm as both circled Earth at 28 000 km/h.

Such a gentle contact between a spacecraft the size of a double-decker bus and a Station 20 times larger is an amazing achievement, highlighting the impressive level of control achieved by this European space system developed by our industry under ESAs direction, said Thomas Reiter, ESAs Director of Human Spaceflight and Operations.

These impressive technological capabilities will live on in the service module of NASAs upcoming Orion crew vehicle.

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International Space Station Crew Welcomes Albert Einstein ATV