Science and exploration
02/08/2022 1151 views 28 likes
Specially trained woolly astronaut Shaun the Sheep has been given a seat on the Artemis I mission to the moon. Shaun’s work was announced by ESA’s Director of Human and Robotic Exploration, Dr David Parker.
David Parker said: “Shaun’s mission completes the first phase for the last members of our astronaut corps, with Italian ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti currently aboard the International Space Station on her second spaceflight, Danish ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen nominated for his second flight and before introducing our new astronauts from the 2021 selection call later this year.”
“This is an exciting time for Shaun and for us at ESA. We are very pleased that he has been selected for the mission and understand that while it may be one small step for a human, it is one giant leap giant for the lambs,” added David Parker.
Shaun will fly on the Artemis I mission, which will be the first flight of NASA’s Orion spacecraft with an ESA European Service Module, scheduled to circle the Moon and return. This mission does not carry a human crew, but will be controlled from the ground with its wool specialist as a passenger.
Shaun with a model of the Orion spacecraft from the Artemis I mission and its European Service Module
Orion and its European Service Module will be launched by the Space Launch System from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA. The spacecraft will enter a low Earth orbit before the rocket’s upper stage fires to take it into a translunar orbit.
The spacecraft will perform a flyby of the Moon, using lunar gravity to gain speed and propel itself 70,000 km beyond the Moon, almost half a million km from Earth, farther than any human or sheep has ever traveled.
In preparation for this flight, Shaun began an astronaut training and familiarization program with the Orion spacecraft and its European Service Module in 2020, traveling to various locations in Europe and the US to see different aspects of the mission This training was documented and will be presented in a series of ESA blog posts prior to launch.
With a passion for exploration, Shaun flew in the special Airbus ‘Zero G’ A310 aircraft during one of its parabolic flights which recreates ‘weightlessness’ conditions similar to those experienced in space.
Under the supervision of an ESA team, this flight prepared Shaun for his role as a space traveler in his film ‘A Shaun the Sheep Movie: Farmageddon’, released in 2019. It provided a glimpse of the ‘rigorous training that all astronauts undertake to prepare. space flight, which he will now experience for real.
Lucy Wendover, Aardman Marketing Director, says: “Aardman is excited to join ESA in making history by launching the first ‘sheep’ into space. As one of the first astronauts to fly an Artemis mission , Shaun is leading the way in lunar exploration, a huge honor for our woolly adventurer! 2022 marks the 15th anniversary of Shaun’s first TV series, so what better way to celebrate than by traveling further afield that no sheep has gone before.”
Follow Shaun’s training for Artemis I and preparations for the first flight of the European Service Module to the Moon here.
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