ATV CARGO INTEGRATION SAFETY CERTIFICATION PROCESS

A large number of manned modules are being progressively launched to the International Space Station (ISS) and integrated on-orbit, required to be operated and maintained over long on-orbit stay time, supported by periodical servicing and supply. The European Space Agency (ESA), together with its several industrial aerospace contractors such as Alcatel Alenia Space, is deeply involved in development of space systems hardware, in planning and execution of mission operations, logistics and supply to ISS of consumables, payloads, scientific experiments, orbital replacement units up to station modules and infrastructures, as needed by the ISS utilization cycles. In this frame, safety plays a significant role to assure that the safety of the systems is preserved throughout the ISS exploitation phase. This paper summarizes methods and requirements for the safety certification process being implemented to dry cargo integration and accommodation in Jules Verne, the 1st flight of the automated transfer vehicle (ATV), one of the major ESA contributions to the utilization of ISS.