Double success for TEXUS

Image © DLR

Astrium has carried out two successful TEXUS missions. TEXUS 45 lifted off with its scientific payload from Kiruna, Sweden, at 7.15 a.m. on 21 February, 2008, after an 11-day countdown. TEXUS 44 had already been successfully launched on 7 February 2008. Both missions were delayed by inclement weather conditions.

"I would like to express my thanks to all members of the team and to our partners for the patience that everyone had to display on this campaign. All systems were fully operational at the crucial moment, and they functioned faultlessly," said TEXUS project manager Andreas Schütte. The countdown for TEXUS 45 had to be aborted ten times due to strong winds. TEXUS 44 fared slightly better, with the mission able to start after an 8-day countdown.

Both missions carried a number of experiments that had been developed in collaboration with universities. TEXUS 45, for instance, carried fish into space to find out how their sense of balance reacts to weightlessness. Biological experiments to investigate plant growth in space were also performed. One series of experiments on TEXUS 44 addressed the contactless processing of molten metals.

The TEXUS programme celebrated its 30th anniversary last autumn.