Main points
- Europe launched the most powerful Ariane 64 rocket with four solid-fuel boosters to put 32 Amazon Leo satellites into orbit.
- This launch marked the first commercial flight of Ariane 6 in full configuration, and the rocket is capable of delivering over 20 metric tons into orbit.
Europe has launched its most powerful rocket ever, the Ariane 64, in a four-thruster configuration. The mission will carry 32 Amazon Leo satellites into low Earth orbit and will be the first commercial flight of a full-fledged Ariane 6.
The European Ariane 6 rocket has launched for the first time in its maximum configuration , the Ariane 64 , with four lateral boosters. The launch took place from a spaceport in French Guiana and was the first commercial flight of the rocket with a full payload. Interesting Engineering reports.
What is special about the new Ariane 6 configuration?
The mission was designated VA267, also known as LE-01 for Amazon Leo . The launch carried 32 Amazon Leo satellites into orbit. This is the first time a European launch vehicle has provided a launch for this satellite system.
Ariane 64 is the most powerful rocket in European history. With four boosters, it is capable of delivering more than 20 metric tons of payload into orbit. This is about twice as much as the twin-booster version, Ariane 62, which has already flown five times.
At launch, the rocket develops about 3.5 million pounds of thrust. For comparison, SpaceX's Falcon Heavy generates about 5.1 million pounds of thrust, and the Starship system with 33 Raptor engines generates about 16.5 million pounds of thrust.
ArianeGroup Technical Director Hervé Gilibert noted during a press event that this was a special launch and a new milestone for Ariane 6. According to him, the rocket accelerated much faster than Ariane 62 and provided significantly more power to launch heavier loads into space.
Under the 20-meter fairing are 32 satellites . After separation, the upper stage of the rocket should deploy them into low Earth orbit. The mission lasted 1 hour 54 minutes – during this time the carrier completely circled the Earth before deploying the devices.
According to Space News, Amazon has already launched more than 150 Leo satellites , formerly known as Project Kuiper. In total, the company plans to create a constellation of more than 3,200 devices. To do this, it has booked 18 Ariane 6 launches.
The rocket, its engines and avionics are being manufactured in 13 countries that are members of the European Space Agency. More than 600 subcontractors are involved in the program.
Ariane 6 was developed as a successor to Ariane 5 with the aim of reducing operating costs by about half . At the same time, the rocket remains fully disposable – unlike the partially reusable Falcon 9 and fully reusable Starship .
Ariane 6 is about 62 meters tall – about the height of a 20-story building . During launch, it burns 142,000 kilograms of solid fuel, which runs out about two minutes after liftoff.