Successful Venus Express main engine test (Forwarded)

ESA News
http://www.esa.int

17 February 2006

Successful Venus Express main engine test

One hundred days after beginning its cruise to Venus, ESA's Venus
Express spacecraft successfully tested its main engine for the first
time in space.

The main engine test is a critical step in the mission. In fact, it is
due to its powerful thrust that Venus Express will be able to 'brake' on
arrival at Venus. The spacecraft must slow down in order to be captured
in orbit around the planet.

The engine was fired during the night of 16/17 February, starting at
01:27 CET (00:27 UT) and the 'burn' lasted for about three seconds.
Thanks to this engine burn, the spacecraft changed its velocity by
almost three metres per second.

About one hour later, the data received from the spacecraft by the Venus
Express ground control team (via ESA's New Norcia antenna in Australia)
revealed that the test was successful.

The engine performed as expected. The spacecraft reacted correctly to
the push and was able to recover the control of its attitude and to
correctly point its high-gain antenna back to Earth to communicate with
ground control.

All data recorded during the burn will now be carefully analysed by
Astrium (who built the spacecraft) and ESA's engineers to study the
performance of the engine in detail.

The next big milestone is the Venus Orbit Insertion manoeuvre on 11
April 2006, which will require the main engine firing sequence to
operate for about 51 minutes in the opposite direction to the spacecraft
motion. This braking will allow the spacecraft to counteract the pull of
the Sun and Venus, and to start orbiting the planet.

Venus Express is currently at a distance of about 47 million kilometres
from Earth.

For more information:

Don McCoy, ESA Venus Express Project Manager
E-mail: Don.McCoy @ esa.int

Philippe Sivac, ESA Venus Express Principal System AIV Engineer
E-mail: Philippe.Sivac @ esa.int

Andrea Accomazzo, ESA Venus Express Spacecraft Operations Manager
E-mail: Andrea.accomazzo @ esa.int

More about...

* Looking at Venus
http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Venus_Express/index.html
* Status reports
http://sci.esa.int/science-e/www/obj...objectid=31575
&farchive_objecttypeid=30 &farchive_objectid=30930
* Venus Express factsheet
http://www.esa.int/esaSC/SEM2EE1A6BD_index_0.html

Related articles

* First light for the Venus Monitoring Camera
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMLWVULWFE_index_0.html
* Earth-Moon observations from Venus Express
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMOIGULWFE_index_0.html
* Venus Express performs flawlessly, LEOP complete
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMK9UJBWFE_index_0.html
* Venus Express mission operations update
http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/ESOC/SEM780738FE_0.html
* Venus Express en route to probe the planet's hidden mysteries
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM56Q638FE_index_0.html

Related links

* ESA Mission Operations

http://www.esa.int/spacecraftops/ESO...551445449.html
* Cebreros webcam

http://www.esa.int/spacecraftops/ESO...749851476.html

IMAGE CAPTIONS:

[Image 1:
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMVX5MVGJE_index_1.html]
An artist's impression of the first firing test of the Venus Express
spacecraft main engine, being performed in space during the night of
16/17 February 2006. The burn started at 01:27 CET and lasted about
three seconds.

Credits: ESA

[Image 2:
http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMVX5MVGJE...html#subhead1]
Detailed view of the Venus Express spacecraft main engine, integrated on
the spacecraft.

Credits: ESA