* This post offers live updates from ESAs Main Control Room in Darmstadt, Germany, as engineers and operators guide Aeolus home. New updates will be included at the top of the page, so check back daily for the most current. *.
Bye Bye Aeolus– a historical end to a trailblazing objective.
29 July 2023, 08:40 CEST.
The reentry comes after a series of intricate manoeuvres that reduced Aeolus orbit from an altitude of 320 km to simply 120 km to reenter the atmosphere and burn up.
Verified in the early hours today, Aeolus reentered Earths atmosphere on 28 July at around 21:00 CEST above Antarctica, validated by United States Space Command.
Crucially, these manoeuvres– the first assisted reentry of its kind– located Aeolus so that any pieces that might not have burned up in the environment would fall within the satellites prepared Atlantic ground tracks.
Day 5: catch up on Phase II, last GO/NO-GO checkpoint for Phase III.
Learn more.
Our teams of engineers, area debris and flight dynamics professionals, well they pulled it off– Aeolus has reentered in line with current guidelines.
28 July 2023, 23:34 CEST.
We anticipate the last confirmation from international partners on the accurate timing and area of Aeoluss reentry in the next few hours. However as groups now head home to dream about todays events, well provide a full update in the early morning.
Good night!
28 July 2023, 21:03 CEST.
According to our calculations, Aeolus needs to now have reentered Earths atmosphere. Our Earth Observer, became a shooting star. Now we wait on verification from our partners with details on the precise time and area of entry.
28 July 2023, 18:44 CEST.
Theres still more news to come– the night is young! In the meantime, whatever is nominal.
Information from the TIRA radar has been analysed, and shows that Aeolus was found almost exactly where it was expected, validating an effective last manoeuvre.
How do we know? The very first sign was a round of applause that called out in the Briefing Room as the news was available in, after confirmation from our area particles experts.
28 July 2023, 18:40 CEST.
© Fraunhofer FHR/ Uwe Bellhäuser.
Aeolus has been identified by the Fraunhofer TIRA radar in Germany. Since we passivated the satellite, we can no longer hear directly from it, and so rely on ground observations to track out Earth Explorer.
For Aeolus, currently out of fuel, it will simply be turned off.).
Our space debris specialists are evaluating the data thats can be found in.
( Passivation is when any energy onboard a spacecraft is eliminated, for instance, its propellant or batteries. Doing this prevents explosions and fragmentation occasions, that might trigger the release of lots of pieces of unwanted space debris.
28 July 2023, 17:38 CEST.
Credit: ESA/J. Mai.
The Mission Control Team has done whatever they planned, Aeolus is now out of their hands. From proficient engineers to terrific wizards in the flight characteristics team, its a proud moment in the Main Control Room. They now turn over to our space debris professionals.
28 July 2023, 17:15 CEST.
The final manoeuvre has actually begun.
28 July 2023, 15:57 CEST.
What were they? Your standard housekeeping information disposes. The drama of today, the last words Aeolus heard from Earth is the exact same as what it heard every day of its 5 years in orbit– a little ping, a little check in, and quickly its on its own.
And now, the extremely last words have been sent out up to Aeolus, the last time it will hear the voice of ESA mission control, Earths last goodbye.
28 July 2023, 14:00 CEST.
The extremely last commands have been beamed approximately Aeolus. “OD-SOM, all commands are onboard as planned”, reported the Spacecraft Operations Manager Viet Duc Tran to Flight Director Isabel Rojo.
It was an understated sentence, for a big minute at the end of this objective.
28 July 2023, 13:43 CEST.
Last checkpoint: we are GO for Phase III!
28 July 2023, 10:47 CEST.
Teams have currently started flying Aeolus in a brand-new way, pointing the spacecraft into the approaching wind to keep it stable in the last hours of its pioneering life..
The extremely excellent news is that all four manoeuvres of Phase II were effectively carried out! They began yesterday afternoon and continued through the night and well into the morning..
Day 4: Phase II– four manoeuvres to bring Aeolus drastically closer to home.
Following last nights burns, Aeolus is currently skimming the top of our environment, already being buffeted by denser air– our worlds protective guard– in a preview of whats to come tonight. Aeolus is now cruising at an elevation listed below 160 km.
Once this important phase is over, there will be time to look into exactly what happened and use lessons to future comparable assisted reentries, that might end up being more typical as a result of this first-of-its-kind attempt..
What happened? Aeolus wasnt implied to be manoeuvred at such low elevations, and flying through this part of the atmosphere is exceptionally tough. Currently, the satellite is feeling the pressure..
The team actually needed to make choices quickly. “Five minutes til AOS” said Flight Operations Director Isabel Rojo, and the team got back into the Main Control Room, got back in touch with the mission, and not long later on calm resumed in the MCR and reassuring intense green lights once again shone on..
But, it wasnt all smooth cruising..
There was a moment when the words “significant abnormality” sounded out over the voice loop, and the team came together in the Briefing Room to discuss what initially appeared like a problem with the thrusters that could imply the remainder of the assisted reentry attempt would need to be aborted..
Great early morning! While we slept, the Mission Control Team kept on flying..
Stay tuned..
Preparations are now underway for the next, and last, GO/NO-GO checkpoint later on, and if all is GO we look forward to the final manoeuvre..
27 July 2023, 21:13 CEST.
As Aeolus reentry manoeuvres continue into the night– and well into the morning!– were signing off. Thank you for following our live coverage of this first-of-its-kind assisted reentry. Tomorrow, therell be the final GO/NO-GO checkpoint as teams examine the health of the satellite.
Join us tomorrow for all the current. Excellent night!
Goodnight in the meantime, till tomorrow!
27 July 2023, 18:26 CEST.
And now we have the numbers.
Manoeuvre # 1/4: success!Burn period: 45 minutesFuel utilized: 6 kgAeolus elevation: from 250 to 230 km.
Thanks group! On to the next …
27 July 2023, 17:38.
Simply in: todays first manoeuvre was a success. More details to follow on Aeoluss brand-new altitude and fuel utilized, as the flight dynamics group evaluate the data that showed up by means of the KSAT Svalbard station in Norway.
Spacecraft Controllers Anne Hartmann, Giuseppe Romanelli and Matthew Pain.Credit: ESA/ J. Mai.
27 July 2023, 11:09 CEST.
Were GO! Stay tuned for the first manoeuvre this afternoon.
27 July 2023, 10:25 CEST.
Were waiting this early morning for the next check point, and will let you referred to as soon as we can if we are GO for 150 km.
At numerous stages throughout the reentry operations, there are “GO/NO-GO checkpoints” when the groups evaluate the scenario and decide if it makes good sense to continue.
The assisted reentry manoeuvres have actually been developed to come together to enhance the– currently very low– risk as Aeolus comes down, however checkpoints are minutes they could be aborted, returning Aeolus to a natural reentry.
Day 3: the calm before Aeolus gets warm.
26 July 2023, 21:58 CEST.
Spacecraft Operations Manager Viet Duc Tran leads a group handover in the Briefing Room, looking into the historical Main Control Room.
Like yesterday, teams have invested the day preparing for the series of manoeuvres to follow. Tomorrow, the plan is to bring Aeolus down from an elevation of 250 to 150 km: the largest fall in the shortest period because the objective was introduced.
Orbiting at 150 km is very low undoubtedly. Aeolus was not made for this. The spirit at Mission Control is determined, delighted, and a little worn out. Today has been a long period of time coming.
Day 2: in between 2 manoeuvres.
Join us tomorrow, for an important day.
25 July 2023, 18:15 CEST.
Today in a calm Main Control Room.
With the success of the first manoeuvres, groups at objective control have actually today been getting ready for the next– a series of 4 thruster firings prepared for this Thursday.
Two days were reserved in the operations planning, this Tuesday and Wednesday, in case anything unforeseen occurred as Aeolus performed yesterdays large, low-orbit thruster burn.
ay 1: Phase I– very first manoeuvre tests big, low-altitude thruster firing.
D.
24 July 2023. Manoeuvre # 1 effectively finished!
With this campaign, ESA operators and engineers are pushing the satellite to the limits of what it can do. The success of this very first manoeuvre bodes well for the rest of the campaign.
Aeolus Flight Control Team throughout Manoeuvre 1.
The main goals were to decrease the satellite in orbit, and check how it would behave when carrying out a big manoeuvre and at very low altitudes. Low-altitude operations are complex, with Earths atmosphere and a higher gravitational pull dragging at the satellite.
The very first Aeolus reentry manoeuvre has been effectively performed– the biggest thruster shooting in the objectives five years in orbit, and more than three times the size of those performed throughout regular operations.
Todays thruster burns, one big and one small, in numbers:.
Keep in mind, Aeolus was not created for this ending. It was meant to naturally fall in an uncontrolled reentry– its propulsion system and fuel reserves were not designed to permit the satellite to be managed down to the required altitudes for a completely managed reentry.
While the ultimate goal is for the spacecraft to burn up in Earths environment throughout reentry, groups need to keep it functioning long enough that they can continue to send out up commands and control it on its course.
Targeted elevation change: 280 to 250 kmTotal burn duration: 37 minutes 24 secondsTotal approximated fuel consumption: ~ 6 kg.
The reentry: where and when?
Operators at ESA objective control in Germany have been keeping a close eye on Aeolus. As soon as it reaches 280 km on Monday 24 July, using the last of Aeolus fuel, the very first of several crucial manoeuvres will be performed to guide ESAs wind satellite gradually back to Earth.
At around 80 km, the majority of the satellite will burn up, however a couple of fragments might reach Earths surface.
The last manoeuvre is scheduled for Friday 28 July, when a last command will direct Aeolus home from an altitude of 150 km to just 120 km. The satellite will reenter.
After finishing its objective, Aeolus has actually been falling from its operational elevation of 320 km given that 19 June.
Aeolus returns: why?
Having actually surpassed its organized life in orbit, the 1360-kg Aeolus satellite is running out of fuel. Having actually made sure that sufficient fuel stays for a few final manoeuvres, ESAs spacecraft operators will bring Aeolus back towards our worlds environment for its inevitable demise.
Get more information, here.
Aeolus illustration, observing Earth.
* This post provides live updates from ESAs Main Control Room in Darmstadt, Germany, as operators and engineers guide Aeolus home. According to our estimations, Aeolus needs to now have actually reentered Earths atmosphere. The Mission Control Team has done everything they prepared, Aeolus is now out of their hands. Aeolus wasnt indicated to be manoeuvred at such low altitudes, and flying through this part of the environment is very tough. As Aeolus reentry manoeuvres continue into the night– and well into the early morning!
( The basic risk from reentering satellites is already really low. The threat of a person being struck by a piece of space debris is roughly three times lower than the risk from a falling meteorite.).
If successful, the assisted reentry makes the already extremely small danger to life from these pieces 42 times smaller sized.
They will aim the mission towards the ocean, more minimizing the extremely small possibility that pieces could cause harm must any reach Earths surface.
This is the first assisted reentry of its kind and sets a precedent for a responsible method to decrease the ever-increasing problem of area debris and uncontrolled reentries.
