Image: Vega lofts Turkey's Earth observation satellite

Arianespace today launched a Vega rocket on a commercial mission to deliver a Turkish Earth observation satellite into orbit.

Liftoff of Vega's eighth flawless mission from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana came at 13:51 GMT on 5 December (14:51 CET; 10:51 local time).

With a mass at liftoff of 1060 kg, Göktürk-1 was manoeuvred into its target Sun-synchronous orbit about 57 minutes into the mission after a series of burns of Vega's upper stage.

Complying with debris regulations to help keep space clean, Vega's upper stage fired a final time to burn up high in the atmosphere over the ocean.

Vega is a 30 m-high, four-stage vehicle designed to accommodate small scientific and Earth observation payloads of 300–2500 kg depending on the orbit.