Space, Ariane 6 delays force ESA to rely again on SpaceX
ESA has once again postponed the test firing of the central stage of Ariane 6. A few weeks ago the head of the European Space Agency confirmed that the debut launch of the new European launcher would not take place at the end of the year, but postponed to 2024.
Yet another postponement for Ariane 6, the new European heavy launcher necessary for access to space on the Old Continent after the withdrawal of Ariane 5 and the momentary grounding of Vega C.
The European Space Agency (ESA) has announced that the ignition of the Vulcain 2.1 engine in the central stage of Ariane 6 at the Kourou spaceport in French Guiana has been postponed again.
In an August 30 update, ESA explained that it had postponed the August 29 test of Ariane 6's main stage due to what the agency described as a "technical problem affecting the control desk". which handles propellant loading and automated countdown, reports Spacenews .
That test, which will fire up the Vulcain 2.1 engine for several seconds, is now rescheduled for September 5th. A longer test remains scheduled for September 26, also at the Kourou spaceport.
As Politico recalls, ESA would have liked the heavy launch system to be ready for use this year, with full commercial operations starting in 2024. But the program has experienced significant delays in recent years. The first launch of the rocket was scheduled for 2020.
Without Ariane 6, and with the withdrawal of Ariane 5, the US SpaceX Falcon 9 is the only viable alternative for ESA to transport satellites into orbit including the launch of 4 Galileo satellites.
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INAUGURAL LAUNCH POSTED TO 2024
In early August, ESA acknowledged that the maiden launch of Ariane 6 had now been postponed to 2024, but did not provide a more specific date.
"After this series of tests we plan to confirm a launch date for Ariane 6," ESA director general Josef Aschbacher told Reuters . Asked whether it was correct that plans for a test launch later this year were now out of reach, Aschbacher told Reuters : "It is correct to say yes."
However, ESA will hold a press briefing on 4 September to update on the latest tests and other preparations for the first launch.
IN THE MEANTIME, ESA STILL RELYES ON SPACEX'S FALCON 9
So Europe still needs the American SpaceX, Elon Musk's aerospace company, to access space.
Already last October, ESA announced that it was moving two scientific missions to SpaceX's Falcon 9.
One has already left. On July 1 , Euclid, the ESA cosmological mission conceived with the aim of exploring the evolution of the dark universe, took off successfully. The launch took place from Cape Canaveral in Florida (USA) aboard SpaceX's Falcon 9 rocket. Aschbacher praised SpaceX for its role in launching Euclid. “SpaceX has been very proactive, very fast, very professional in providing this launch service. And I'm very happy now that this has been successfully conducted."
And now the Hera probe's next mission will be launched on a Falcon 9 in October 2024 (originally planned with Ariane 6).
But relying on Elon Musk's rocket company undermines the EU executive's insistence on building strategic autonomy, Politico notes, adding that "SpaceX's partially reusable rocket technology also gives it a competitive edge over Ariane 6 before still that the system produced in Europe is ready.
This is a machine translation from Italian language of a post published on Start Magazine at the URL https://www.startmag.it/innovazione/spazio-i-ritardi-di-ariane-6-costringono-esa-ad-affidarsi-a-spacex/ on Fri, 01 Sep 2023 06:15:19 +0000.