Following a spectacular liftoff, ESA’s ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter is performing flawlessly en route to the Red Planet.
The ESA–Roscosmos ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO) and the Schiaparelli entry, descent and landing demonstrator are well on their way following the 14 March launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.
After a raucous 10 minute ascent, the three-stage Proton-M rocket delivered the Breeze-M upper stage and its ExoMars payload into an initial parking orbit. Following four crucial engine burns in the next 10 hours, Breeze-M released ExoMars into its interplanetary path to Mars, achieving a departure speed accurate to within just 1.5 m/s.
“We had an extremely precise orbital injection thanks to Proton–Breeze and our Russian colleagues, and we are now well on our way to Mars,” says ESA flight director Michel Denis. [More at link]