Orion Abort to orbit

The Orion spacecraft will ferry astronauts to the Moon on NASA's Artemis missions. The European Service Module is ESA’s contribution to Orion and provides electricity, water, oxygen and nitrogen as well as keeping the spacecraft at the right temperature and on course. In case of a problem during launch the European Service Module can also activate to fly the astronauts to safety. This infographic shows the steps of an Abort To Orbit (ATO).

Orion is NASA’s next spacecraft to send humans into space and part of the Artemis programme. It is designed to send astronauts farther into space than ever before, beyond the Moon and to the lunar Gateway.

ESA has designed and is overseeing the development of Orion’s service module, the part of the spacecraft that supplies air, electricity and propulsion. Much like a train engine pulls passenger carriages and supplies power, the European Service Module will take the Orion capsule to its destination and back.

The Orion spacecraft is built by NASA with ESA providing the service module. The arrangement stems from the international partnership for the International Space Station. NASA’s decision to cooperate with ESA on a critical element for the mission is a strong sign of trust and confidence in ESA’s capabilities.

More than 20 companies around Europe are now building the European Service Modules as NASA works on Orion and the Space Launch System.

Learn more about Orion and Europe’s involvement here. Follow the latest updates via the Orion blog.