September 29th was the day when Europe’s
unmanned cargo ship reentered the atmosphere successfully and then it destroyed
itself along with the garbage it collected from the Space Station.
The vehicle
was destined to break up in dozens of pieces weighing between 10 and 150
kilograms each, pieces which burned up due to the immense friction they experienced
when entering the earth’s atmosphere.
The vehicle’s route to destruction was
carefully planed by the people at the European Space Agency, the remaining
pieces falling into the South Pacific Ocean.
The ATV (Automated Transfer Vehicle) was used to deliver
food, water and other provisions to the astronauts on the Space Station and to
get rid of the garbage which was accumulated on the Space Station during the
astronauts’ stay there. The reentry of the vehicle was programmed during night
time in order for the event to be more visible and easier to photograph.
ESA
even went to the heights of hiring chase planes from NASA to photograph and
even film the event. The reentry can be accurately described as a large ball of
fire crushing into the ocean. Maritime authorities were informed about the event
and a no-go zone was established, 2,700 kilometers long and 200 kilometers
wide.
The hardest part of the ATV’s mission was successfully going
into orbit and docking the station. Officials say that the vehicle performed
wonderfully, just like it was supposed to do. Reentering the atmosphere was the
easy part, but by far the most spectacular.
Because of the success and high
performance of the ATV, ESA officials are considering upgrading the vehicle to
be able to carry astronauts out to space and back.
The issue here is finding a
way for the shuttle to safely reenter the atmosphere. Simonetta Di Pippo, the
director of human spaceflight from ESA, thinks that the success of this mission
will help the persuasion of the member governments to fund with 200 million
euros ESA’s next project.
© 2007 - 2009 - eFluxMedia