Orion service module separation tests

The European Service Module test article for NASA’s Orion spacecraft put to the test at the agency’s Plum Brook Station in Ohio, USA.

The module sits directly below Orion’s crew capsule and provides propulsion, power, thermal control, and water and air for four astronauts. The solar array spans 19 m and provides enough electricity to power two households. A little over 5 m in diameter and 4 m high, the service module weighs 13.5 tonnes.

When Orion is launched it will be bolted to a spacecraft adapter that keeps it in place inside NASA’s Space Launch System rocket. A separation system will fire to break it away from the vehicle. This video shows the system being tested.