Edoardo Amaldi ATV (ATV-003)
Ariane 5 ES
Arianespace
Mission
Edoardo Amaldi ATV (ATV-003)
- Type: Resupply
- Orbit: Low Earth Orbit
ATV-3 is the Automated Transfer Vehicle operated by the European Space Agency (ESA) to resupply the international space station (ISS) with propellant, water, air and dry cargo. After 5 days in orbit it docked to the ISS on 23rd March 2012.
Location
Ariane Launch Area 3
Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana
Ariane Launch Area 3 has witnessed the launch of 118 rockets, including 118 orbital launch attempts, while Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana, has been the site for 322 rocket launches.
Rocket
ArianeGroup Ariane 5 ES
The Ariane 5 ES (Evolution Storable) has an estimated LEO launch capacity of 21,000 kg (46,000 lb). It includes all the performance improvements of Ariane 5 ECA core and boosters but replaces the ESC-A second stage with the restartable EPS used on Ariane 5 GS variants. It was used to launch the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) into a 260 km circular low Earth orbit inclined at 51.6° and has been used 3 times to launch 4 Galileo navigation satellites at a time directly into their operational orbit. The Ariane 5 ES flew 8 times from 2008 to 2018 with no failures.
Agency
Arianespace
Arianespace SA is a multinational company founded in 1980 as the world’s first commercial launch service provider. It undertakes the production, operation, and marketing of the Ariane programme. Their vehicles launch exclusively from French Guiana in South America.
