ESA’s Director of Human and Robotic Exploration David Parker will formally congratulate Shaun before he visits space centres across Europe.
Woolly astronaut Shaun the Sheep flew on the Artemis I mission, the first flight of NASA’s Orion spacecraft with an ESA European Service Module, around the Moon and back.
Orion and its European Service Module were launched from the Kennedy Space Center in Florida on 16 November 2022. The spacecraft, with astronaut Shaun the Sheep on board, performed a flyby of the Moon, using lunar gravity to gain speed and propel itself 70 000 km beyond the Moon, almost half a million kilometres from Earth - farther than any human, or sheep, has ever travelled.
Shaun returned safely when the Orion crew capsule separated from its European Service Module, reentered Earth’s atmosphere and successfully splashed down in the Pacific Ocean on 11 December.
In preparation for this flight, Shaun participated in an intensive programme of astronaut training. This training was documented and presented in a series of ESA blog posts leading up to the launch.
ESA now invites you to celebrate Shaun the Sheep’s return from his mission:
Date: Wednesday 29 March 2023Time: 12:00-13:15 BST / 13:00-14:15 CEST
Location: Aardman Animations, 1 Gas Ferry Road, Bristol, BS1 6UN
Media opportunities include:
- Filming with astronaut Shaun
- An interview with ESA’s Director of Human and Robotic Exploration David Parker
- A new piece of Aardman history will be revealed along with the chance to interview Aardman’s co-founder Peter Lord.
Media registration:
To attend, please RSVP to Anna Lewis on anna.lewis@aardman.com
Refreshments will be provided.
