Jules Verne boosts ISS orbit

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The Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) is the first fully automatic re-supply spacecraft of its kind. ESAs Jules Verne ATV is the first European space supplier for the ISS. It was launched 9 March 2008 from Europes spaceport in Kourou French Guiana. Cr ...
The Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) is the first fully automatic re-supply spacecraft of its kind. ESA's Jules Verne ATV is the first European space supplier for the ISS. It was launched 9 March 2008 from Europe's spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Credits: ESA - D.Ducros

ESA's Jules Verne ATV was used for the first time early this morning to raise the orbit of the International Space Station. A 740-second burn of the Automated Transfer Vehicle's main engines successfully lifted the altitude of the 280-tonne Station by around 4.5 km to a height of 342 km above the Earth's surface.


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