Orbital Express

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Orbital Express: ASTRO (left) and NEXTSat (right)
Orbital Express: ASTRO and NEXTSat

The Orbital Express project was an experiment by the US Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency to develop safe and cost-effective, autonomous techniques for satellite maintenance in orbit (English: On-Orbit Servicing ).

Orbital Express consists of two satellites:

  • Astro (Autonomous Space Transport Robotic Operations) was the active satellite that served as a prototype of a supply and maintenance satellite. ASTRO was built by Boeing Integrated Defense Systems and has a mass of approximately 700 kg. ASTRO has a docking adapter and gripper arm, as well as tanks and equipment for transferring the fuel.
  • Nextsat (Next Generation Serviceable Satellite) simulated a satellite to be serviced . The 224 kg satellite was built by Ball Aerospace . NEXTSat is equipped with a coupling adapter and tanks for receiving the transferred fuel.

The following technologies are to be tested with the two satellites:

mission

Astro and Nextsat were launched on March 9, 2007, along with six other satellites on an Atlas V rocket from the Kennedy Space Center . On April 17th, the satellites performed the first autonomous transfer of liquids and components.

The first autonomous free flight and docking maneuver took place on May 10th. In another docking experiment, the Astro on-board computer malfunctioned, causing the satellites to unintentionally drift apart. After Astro was supplied with data for a flight path from the ground station in order to get close to Nextsat again, Astro was able to dock independently without further intervention. A complex approach, inspection and docking maneuver that could serve as the basis for future service missions was carried out on June 22nd.

The last rendezvous and docking maneuver took place on June 29, 2007. Then the last exchange of components took place with the change of the flight computer to ASTRO. Plans for the continued use of the satellites by NASA have not turned into reality. Eventually they parted for the last time and maneuvered to a distance of over 300 km to conduct sensor tests. After a final maneuver to increase the distance, the satellites were decommissioned by draining the remaining fuel supplies and switching off the on-board electronics on July 22, 2007.

Astro burned up in Earth's atmosphere on October 25, 2013, while Nextsat is still in orbit.Template: future / in 2 years

  • Self-portrait of the coupled ASTRO (left) and NEXTSat (right) satellites in orbit

  • NEXTSat in free flight. Recorded by ASTRO

  • NEXTSat shortly before docking with ASTRO

Web links

Commons : Orbital Express  - collection of images, videos and audio files

Individual evidence

  1. ↑ Boeing Orbital Express Conducts First Autonomous Spacecraft-to-Spacecraft Fluid and Component Transfer ( Memento of May 5, 2007 in the Internet Archive )
  2. ↑ Boeing Orbital Express Completes First Autonomous Free Flight and Capture ( Memento from December 1, 2008 in the Internet Archive )
  3. ↑ Spaceflight Now - In-space satellite servicing tests come to an end
  4. ↑ Boeing Orbital Express Achieves Another First in Space ( Memento from May 23, 2013 in the Internet Archive )
  5. ↑ NextSat on-orbit Experiences. (PDF) April 15, 2008, p. 10 , archived from the original on June 9, 2013 ; accessed on September 6, 2013 .
  6. ↑ Space-Track.Org. Retrieved September 6, 2019 .
  7. ↑ OE (NEXTSAT) on N2YO.com