service module

American  

noun

1. (often initial capital letters) the section of an Apollo spacecraft containing the principal propulsion system, electrical system, water, and other supplies.

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service module British  

noun

1. a section of an Apollo spacecraft housing the rocket engine, radar, fuel cells, etc, and jettisoned on re-entry into the earth's atmosphere See also lunar module command module

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Etymology

Origin of service module

First recorded in 1960–65

Example Sentences

The European Service Module, which sits behind the crew capsule, is the European Space Agency's contribution to the mission and has been built by Airbus.

From BBC

"The European Service Module is so important - we basically can't get to the Moon without it," says Sian Cleaver, a spacecraft engineer at Airbus.

From BBC

Yet my calculations had not only helped the Eagle land successfully, but they also helped it to sync back up with the command and service module so that our guys could come back home.

From Literature

On arrival, the service module, which has the spacecraft's primary propulsion system, separates from the crew module.

From BBC

Along with Frank Borman and Bill Anders, Jim Lovell made history when the three undertook the first lunar mission on Apollo 8, testing the Command/Service Module and its life support systems in preparation for the later Apollo 11 landing.

From BBC