The European Ariane 6 rocket successfully launched its first commercial mission, taking the 3.5 -ton French military satellite CSO -3.
At 17:24 CET on Thursday, the New Ariane 6 rocket picked up the Kurou spaceport in French Guana, leading to an important milestone for independent access to Europe’s space. According to the German news agency DPA, the launch was scheduled for Monday, exactly 30 minutes before the ignition due to the unspecified “discrepancy”.
An important mission for European Space Freedom
For its first operating mission, Ariane 6 posted CSO -3 military reconnaissance satellite into orbiting about 800 km above Earth. The satellite is expected to remain operational for at least a decade.
The Ariane 6 rocket, developed as the successor of Ariane 5, was its first flight in July 2024. The European Space Agency (ESA) considers this launch a success, as since the retiring Ariane 5 in Europe, since the service of Erienne, has been dependent on the private American company Spacex in Europe, due to the Geopolitical Fallout for Russia’s launching for it. Your satellites.
Future flights and capabilities
The second Arian 6 launch was initially planned for December 2024, but was postponed by February and later to March to allow the woman’s flight allow fully data analysis. Ariangroup and its subsidiary Arianspace preferred to ensure mission credibility before proceeding with further launch.
Designed for both commercial and governmental satellite perishans, the Ariane 6 offers a cost -effective option for its predecessor, Ariane 5, which was in service from 1996 to 2023. Depending on the mission requirements, the Ariane 6 can be equipped with two or four solid rocket boosters. It can transport up to 11.5 tons to higher orbits and 21.6 tons to lower ones. Thanks to its restartable upper-stage engine, the rocket can deliver payloads to multiple orbits in a single mission. However, unlike some modern rockets, Ariane 6 is not reusable.
ESA announced last summer that it had already secured orders for dozens of Ariane 6 launches, highlighting strong demand for Europe’s latest heavy-lift rocket.
