Europe's 'Jules Verne' cargo ship mission to ISS

[Rick]

Europe's space freighter has undocked from the International Space Station after completing its mission to the orbiting platform.

The ship - dubbed Jules Verne - moved away from the rear of the ISS at 2129GMT, taking itself to a position some 5km below the station.

The freighter will enter the atmosphere in three weeks' time, on 29 September.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7598980.stm

[Rick]

Europe's biggest, most sophisticated spaceship is about to bring its six-month mission to an end by plunging into the Pacific in a ball of flames.

The "Jules Verne" freighter undocked from the space station three weeks ago packed with rubbish and will take its unwanted cargo into a destructive dive.

Most of the vehicle is expected to burn up in the atmosphere; only fragments will make it down to the ocean water.

The first of two engine firings to bring the ship down has been completed.

(In best BBC fashion, this story's been replaced by the one below...  )

[Rick]

Europe's "Jules Verne" space freighter has destroyed itself in a controlled burn-up over the southern Pacific.

The 13.5-tonne cargo ship had completed a six-month mission to the space station and was packed with the orbiting platform's rubbish.

Two engine firings were required to slow the freighter sufficiently to pull it into the atmosphere.

The European and US space agencies had chase planes in the air to try to capture the fireball on video.

Astronauts on the space station reported seeing the light from the falling freighter.

More: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7641915.stm

[mickw]

GLASGOW, Scotland — Europe's unmanned space cargo vehicle successfully reentered the atmosphere over the south Pacific Ocean Sept. 29, breaking up into dozens of fragments that fell into the ocean along a pre-selected path that had been cleared of maritime traffic, European Space Agency (ESA) officials said.

Program managers expect that photographic data from two aircraft ESA hired from NASA, and an imager aboard the international space station flying overhead at the time, will provide precise data on the amount of debris that survived reentry.

More:  http://www.space.com/missionlaunches/080929-sn-atv-reentry.html

Even more:  http://link.brightcove.com/services/link/bcpid1513658585/bctid1825559897

[Rick]

I'm told the BBC has video on http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/science/nature/7644111.stm

[mickw]

Wow 

[Mike]

So that's what a £1,000,000,000 firework looks like!