23.05.2024

Ariane 6 inaugural launch planned for first half of July

A booster with an Avio-produced P120C motor is moved into position to be mated to the core stage of an Ariane 6 ahead of that rocket's first flight, scheduled for the summer. Credit: ESA/ArianeGroup/Arianespace/CNES

WASHINGTON — The first launch of the Ariane 6 is expected in the first half of July as the vehicle takes shape at its French Guiana launch site.

The European Space Agency announced May 21 that the joint team working on the Ariane 6, including ESA, prime contractor ArianeGroup, launch services provider Arianespace and the French space agency CNES, expect the Ariane 6 inaugural launch to take place in the first two weeks of July.

That is in the middle of a time frame previously announced by ESA of somewhere between the middle of June and end of July. ESA said a specific, albeit tentative, date for the launch will be announced at the ILA air show in Berlin, scheduled for June 5 to 9.

The update was the first refinement of the launch date since November 2023, when ESA announced the window of the middle of June to the end of July. Officials previously said that they would provide an update on the launch after the completion of a qualification review slated to end in late April.

In the latest update, ESA said it completed that qualification review April 29. Workers have also started to stack the rocket itself, attaching its two solid rocket boosters to the core stage. The upper stage and payloads will be installed in June ahead of a fueling test and practice countdown called a wet dress rehearsal scheduled for June 18.

While ESA had not provided an update until now on the Ariane 6 launch dates, executives with two major suppliers said they believed the launch was on schedule. “It seems to me we’re going in the right direction for a flight in July,” Giulio Ranzo, chief executive of Avio, said of Ariane 6 in a May 9 earnings call. Avio produces the solid rocket motors used in the Ariane 6 strap-on boosters.

“We are very confident that Ariane 6 will launch within the known launch period from mid-June through the end of July,” Marco Fuchs, chief executive of OHB, said in his company’s May 8 earnings call. “I think preparations are going very well.”

Josef Aschbacher, director general of ESA, called the first launch of Ariane 6 the “big event of the year” for Europe in space during a session of the 39^th Space Symposium in April. A successful flight of the long-delayed Ariane 6 would help alleviate the “launcher crisis” that has forced ESA and the European Commission to purchase several Falcon 9 launches from SpaceX. That includes the scheduled May 28 launch of EarthCARE, a joint Earth science mission of ESA and the Japanese space agency JAXA, on a Falcon 9 from Vandenberg Space Force Base in California.

At Space Symposium, though, Aschbacher worked to set expectations about that first flight. “Statistically, there’s a 47% chance the first flight may not succeed or happen exactly as planned,” he said, citing the track record of first launches of new large launch vehicles. “We’ll do everything we can to make it a successful flight but I think it’s something that we have to keep in mind.”

Quelle: SN

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Update: 4.06.2024

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YPSat checked in for Ariane 6 flight

ESA’s Young Professionals Satellite, YPSat, being checked out in a cleanroom at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, in preparation for the inaugural launch of Ariane 6, coming soon.

YPSat is a project run in its entirety by ESA Young Professionals to give them direct early experience in designing, building and testing hardware for space. Equipped with cameras – seen here at the top of the payload – a quantum-based magnetic sensor and an amateur radio unit, YPSat’s goal is to capture all the key phases of Ariane 6's first flight.

Members of the YPSat team arrived in French Guiana a week ago to begin an integration process including a battery health check, and various checks to ensure the nominal functionality of all systems. After that the YPSat payload will be bolted to the Ariane 6 launch adapter.

Seen here are Katrin Geigenberger and Martin Nenkov of the YPSat team. Follow further updates on YPSat’s progress via the team’s LinkedIn.

Ariane 6’s first attempt for launch will happen within the first two weeks of July 2024.

Quelle: ESA

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Update: 6.06.2024

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Ariane 6 inaugural launch targeted for 9 July

Josef Aschbacher was joined by the Ariane 6 Task Force partners, ArianeGroup CEO Martin Sion, CNES CEO Philippe Baptiste and Arianespace CEO Stéphane Israël on stage to announce this milestone.

Walther Pelzer, Director General of the German Space Agency at DLR, was also present for the occasion.

Ariane 6 is Europe’s new heavy lift launch vehicle replacing its extremely successful predecessor, Ariane 5. Modular and agile, Ariane 6 has a reignitable upper stage allowing it to launch multiple missions on different orbits on a single flight.

ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher said, “Ariane 6 marks a new era of autonomous, versatile European space travel. This powerful rocket is the culmination of many years of dedication and ingenuity from thousands across Europe and, as it launches, it will re-establish Europe’s independent access to space. I am glad to announce that the first launch attempt will be on 9 July. I would like to thank the teams on the ground for their tireless hard work, teamwork and dedication in this last stretch of the inaugural launch campaign. Ariane 6 is Europe’s rocket for the needs of today, adaptable to our future ambitions.”

For the development of Ariane 6, ESA is the Launch System Architect working with prime contractor ArianeGroup for the development of the launch vehicle and with CNES for the development of the ground segment. ESA is the operator responsible for the inaugural flight while for subsequent flights Arianespace is the launch service provider that markets and operates the Ariane 6 launcher for institutional and commercial customers to launch a variety of missions into orbit.

“The announcement of the scheduled date for Ariane 6’s first flight puts us on the home stretch of the launch campaign and we are fully engaged in completing the very last steps. This flight will mark the culmination of years of development and testing by the teams at ArianeGroup and its partners across Europe. It will pave the way for commercial operations and a significant ramp-up over the next two years. Ariane 6 is a powerful, versatile and scalable launcher that will ensure Europe’s autonomous access to space,” said Martin Sion, CEO of ArianeGroup.

“Once again, the announcement of the inaugural flight date of Ariane 6 from the Guiana Space Centre is a crucial step towards European sovereignty in terms of access to space. Reaching this date was made possible thanks to the colossal efforts of all entities in the home stretch. I would like to pay tribute the collective achievement of overcoming the pitfalls over the months. Now to the final adjustments before launch. Europe in space is ready for take-off: we're all united behind Ariane 6!” exclaimed Philippe Baptiste, CEO of CNES.  

“With 30 missions in our order book, Ariane 6 has already gained the trust of institutional and commercial customers. We are preparing to make Ariane 6’s second launch by the end of the year, followed by a steady rise to around ten launches a year once we reach cruising speed. It represents a splendid challenge for Arianespace and our partners,” added Stéphane Israël, CEO of Arianespace.

At Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, many and varied payloads have been integrated on Ariane 6’s payload carrier. The last major milestone before launch is the wet dress rehearsal. Once this activity has been completed, the Ariane 6 Task Force will provide a joint update on the inaugural flight. 

Quelle: ESA

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Update: 9.06.2024

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At long last: Europe's new Ariane 6 rocket set to debut on July 9

 

The next-generation rocket will lift off from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana.

Europe's new Ariane 6 heavy-lift rocket is set to launch for the first time on July 9 after a series of delays. 

The European Space Agency's (ESA) Ariane 6 rocket, developed by ArianeGroup, will lift off from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana. The date of the rocket's long-awaited inaugural flight was announced at the ILA Berlin air show on June 5; however, a specific launch time or window has not yet been released. 

"Ariane 6 marks a new era of autonomous, versatile European space travel," Josef Aschbacher, ESA's director general, said in a statement from the space agency. "This powerful rocket is the culmination of many years of dedication and ingenuity from thousands across Europe and, as it launches, it will re-establish Europe's independent access to space." 

Ariane 6 is Europe's next-generation heavy-lift launch vehicle, consisting of a main and upper stage and two or four solid rocket boosters. Its reignitable upper stage will allow it to launch multiple missions on different orbits on a single flight, ESA officials said in the statement. 

The new rocket will replace the venerable Ariane 5, which was retired last Julyafter 27 years of service and more than 100 successful launches. Europe's original plan was to have the Ariane 6 up and running by 2020, allowing for a smooth transition between the two launch vehicles. However, Ariane 6 suffered a series of delays caused by technical issues, COVID-19 and design changes. 

"I would like to thank the teams on the ground for their tireless hard work, teamwork and dedication in this last stretch of the inaugural launch campaign," Aschbacher said in the statement. "Ariane 6 is Europe's rocket for the needs of today, adaptable to our future ambitions."

With a scheduled launch date officially on the books, ESA and its partners are completing the final steps for liftoff, including a fueling test and practice countdown known as a wet dress rehearsal, which is slated for June 18. 

"This flight will mark the culmination of years of development and testing by the teams at ArianeGroup and its partners across Europe," Martin Sion, CEO of ArianeGroup, said in the statement. "It will pave the way for commercial operations and a significant ramp-up over the next two years. Ariane 6 is a powerful, versatile and scalable launcher that will ensure Europe's autonomous access to space." 

While the inaugural Ariane 6 launch is primarily a demonstration flight, it will carry various payloads, which have already been integrated on the rocket's payload carrier. If successful, Ariane 6 could launch on a second flight by the end of the year, with the goal to eventually complete about 10 launches each year. 

Quelle: SC