The European Space Agency (ESA) supplies the European Service Module (ESM) for the Orion spacecraft used in NASA's Artemis mission. The main contractor, Airbus Defence and Space, produces the module, with companies across Europe supplying components. In January this year, the main engine nozzle was installed into ESM-2 for the Orion spacecraft that will be used in the Artemis Ⅱ mission to fly a crew around the Moon, planned for 2024. The ESM powers Orion's Orbital Manoeuvring System to propel, navigate and rotate the spacecraft and its onboard electricity, water, oxygen and nitrogen supplies. Following assembly at the European Service Modules integration hall in Bremen, Germany, ESM-2 was transported to the Neil Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida as the build-up to launch began. ESA contractors are already working on ESM parts for the Artemis Ⅲ mission planned to land humans on the Moon and the subsequent Artemis Ⅳ and Ⅴ.
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