European rocket Ariane 6 finally ready for take-off

Europe’s new Ariane 6 rocket is set to make its first launch next week, carrying with it the continent’s hopes of regaining independent access to space and fending off growing competition from Elon Musk’s SpaceX.

After a four-year delay, the European Space Agency’s (ESA) most powerful rocket is finally set to blast off from Europe’s spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, at 3:00 p.m. (6:00 p.m. GMT) on July 9.

Since the last flight of the Ariane 5, the rocket’s predecessor, a year ago, Europe has not been able to launch satellites or other missions into space without relying on rivals such as the American company SpaceX.

Kourou was the site of Russian Soyuz rocket launches for more than a decade before Moscow withdrew them after the 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Later that year, Europe’s Vega-C lightweight launcher was grounded after a launch failure. Delays to the first flight of Ariane 6, originally scheduled for 2020, compounded the crisis.

“Everything that could go wrong, did go wrong,” said ESA Director Josef Aschbacher.

This is why “Ariane 6 is crucial for Europe,” he added. “It is absolutely essential that Europe has independent access to space.”

After the difficulties of the 4.5 billion euro ($4.8 billion) programme, the European space industry is watching the period leading up to the launch with nervousness.

A “wet dress rehearsal” was held late last month and reviewed all launch procedures, up to the moment before the engines were ignited on the launch pad.

“Everything went smoothly… like a Swiss watch,” said Toni Tolker-Nielsen, ESA’s acting director of space transportation, adding that there was no reason to question the launch date.

– “Important moment” –

Ariane 6 will place satellites in geostationary orbit, which appears stationary because of its Earth-like speed at 36,000 kilometers above Earth. It can also launch constellations from a few hundred kilometers above the Earth.

The rocket’s upper stage, powered by the Vinci engine, ignites after liftoff to place the satellites into orbit before falling into the Pacific Ocean – a special feature to avoid space debris.

The first Ariane 6 launch will use two boosters, with a more powerful four-boom version planned for mid-next year.

However, the rocket’s thrusters and other parts are not reusable, unlike SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket.

Billionaire Musk has repeatedly criticized Ariane 6 for not being reusable.

The European response was that it would not make economic sense for the rocket to be reusable because it was designed for far fewer launches than the Falcon 9.

The rocket will initially perform nine launches per year, down from the Falcon 9’s 14 launches in May alone.

The rocket’s maiden flight will carry 18 different small objects, including university microsatellites and scientific experiments.

Its first commercial flight is scheduled for the end of 2024, with 14 more planned over the next two years.

– Late cancellation in shock –

A positive point for Ariane 6 is that the space sector is booming.

Spending on launchers, satellites and other sectors of the space economy is expected to reach $822 billion by 2032, up from $508 billion last year, according to consultancy Novaspace.

But this has not yet been enough to make Ariane 6 profitable.

Funding for the first 15 launches has been secured.

But ESA’s 22 member states have agreed to subsidise the rocket with €340 million per year, from the 16th to the 42nd flight, in exchange for an 11% discount.

Ariane 6 already has a backlog of 30 missions, including 18 to deploy some of the satellites in Amazon’s Kuiper constellation.

“This is absolutely unprecedented for a rocket that has not yet flown,” said Stephane Israël, CEO of launch services provider Arianespace.

However, just days before the maiden flight, European weather satellite operator EUMETSAT cancelled plans to use Europe’s Ariane 6 in favour of SpaceX’s Falcon 9, citing “exceptional circumstances”.

Philippe Baptiste, director general of the National Centre for Space Studies (CNES), described the day as “very disappointing for European space efforts.”

Faced with such tough competition, the challenge for Ariane 6 will be to survive in a “market that needs rockets,” said Martin Sion, CEO of ArianeGroup.

After all, Ariane 6 is “Europe’s sovereignty launcher,” he added.

mra-dl/spb