Confronted by parts obsolescence and waning political support, the European Space Agency has shut down subsystem production lines for the Automated Transfer Vehicle as member states debate how they will contribute to future international space exploration efforts, according to top spaceflight officials. ATV 3, christened Edoardo Amaldi after an Italian physicist, arrived at the International Space Station on March 28. Credit: NASA The huge cargo freighters, weighing more than 20 tons fully loaded, will stop flying in 2014 when the fifth resupply craft delivers equipment to the International Space Station. ESA member states decided to discontinue the program after briefly considering...
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