(PhysOrg.com) -- At 15:12:02 CEST, at the beginning of a 55-minute launch window, the Herschel and Planck satellite pair lifted off on board an Ariane 5 from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.
Space Exploration
May 14, 2009
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A robot freighter bearing 6.6 tonnes of cargo docked with the International Space Station (ISS) on Saturday, the European Space Agency (ESA) said.
Space Exploration
Jun 15, 2013
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Nearly 40 years ago, European countries worried by US and Soviet dominance of space gave the green light to the first Ariane rocket, a wee launcher capable of hoisting a satellite payload of just 1.8 tonnes—the equivalent ...
Space Exploration
Jun 3, 2013
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A Soyuz rocket launched two Galileo satellites into orbit on Friday, marking a crucial step for Europe's planned navigation system, operator Arianespace announced.
Space Exploration
Oct 13, 2012
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Japan will put a commercial satellite into space on Friday, officials said, in its first foray into the European- and Russian-dominated world of contract launches.
Space Exploration
May 16, 2012
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An automated craft laden with supplies for the International Space Station (ISS) headed into space on Friday in the heaviest launch ever undertaken by Europe.
Space Exploration
Mar 23, 2012
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Europe on Monday successfully launched a new lightweight rocket carrying a test payload, culminating a more than 12-year quest to master the entire range of space launchers.
Space Exploration
Feb 13, 2012
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An unmanned European-Japanese mission to Mercury will be launched by Ariane 5 rocket in July 2014 under a contract announced on Thursday by Arianespace.
Space Exploration
Sep 15, 2011
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A European freighter will be destroyed by atmospheric burn-up next week after completing its supply mission to mankind's orbital outpost, the European Space Agency (ESA) said on Friday.
Space Exploration
Jun 17, 2011
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A European Space Agency rocket blasted off Wednesday bearing a 20-tonne supply ship destined for a rendezvous with the manned International Space Station.
Space Exploration
Feb 16, 2011
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Ariane 5 is a European expendable launch system designed to deliver payloads into geostationary transfer orbit or low Earth orbit.
It is manufactured under the authority of the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), with EADS Astrium Space Transportation (Astrium) as prime contractor, leading a consortium of sub-contractors. The rocket is operated and marketed by Arianespace as part of the Ariane programme. Astrium builds the rockets in Europe and Arianespace launches them from the Guiana Space Centre.
It succeeded Ariane 4, but does not derive from it directly. Its development took 10 years and cost $7 billion.[citation needed] Ariane 5 has been refined since the first launch in successive versions, G, G+, GS, ECA, and most recently, ES. ESA originally designed Ariane 5 to launch the manned mini shuttle Hermes, and thus intended it to be "human rated" from the beginning. After ESA cancelled Hermes, the rocket became a purely robotic launcher.
Two satellites can be mounted using a SYLDA carrier (SYstème de Lancement Double Ariane). Three main satellites are possible depending on size using SPELTRA (Structure Porteuse Externe Lancement TRiple Ariane). Up to eight secondary payloads, usually small experiment packages or minisatellites, can be carried with an ASAP (Ariane Structure for Auxiliary Payloads) platform.
By mid 2007, Arianespace has ordered a total of 99 Ariane 5 launchers from Astrium. The first batch ordered in 1995 consisted of 14 launchers, while the second—P2—batch ordered in 1999 consisted of 20 launchers. A third—PA—batch consisting of 25 ECA and 5 ES launchers was ordered in 2004. The latest batch ordered in mid 2007 consist of another 35 ECA launchers. Through these orders, the Ariane 5 will be the workhorse of Arianespace at least through 2015.
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