{"id":5199,"date":"2024-07-10T15:02:44","date_gmt":"2024-07-10T15:02:44","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/2024\/07\/10\/europes-newest-rocket-ariane-6-blasts-off-in-historic-maiden-voyage\/"},"modified":"2024-07-10T15:02:44","modified_gmt":"2024-07-10T15:02:44","slug":"europes-newest-rocket-ariane-6-blasts-off-in-historic-maiden-voyage","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/dailywashingtoninsider.com\/index.php\/2024\/07\/10\/europes-newest-rocket-ariane-6-blasts-off-in-historic-maiden-voyage\/","title":{"rendered":"Europe\u2019s newest rocket Ariane 6 blasts off in \u2018historic\u2019 maiden voyage"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Europe’s newest rocket Ariane 6 has launched from French Guiana on the northern coast of South America.<\/p>\n

If the full launch is a success, it will give the European Space Agency (ESA) the ability to launch satellites again by itself.<\/p>\n

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Ariane 6 took off from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, just after 8pm BST after having a four-hour launch window from 7pm to 11pm.<\/p>\n

Its inaugural flight is expected to take just under three hours.<\/p>\n

Just before 9pm BST ESA director general Josef Aschbacher posted on X to say the rocket was in circular orbit.<\/p>\n

<\/div>\n

A short while later, he posted a video of celebrations from headquarters, with the caption: “We have made history for Europe.”<\/p>\n

“Everything is nominal, everything is going so well and this is such a beautiful moment,” he said.<\/p>\n

Once in operation, Ariane 6 will become the space agency’s newest taxi to low orbit, able to carry satellites and equipment up out of the atmosphere.<\/p>\n

It is the latest in a long line of Ariane satellite launchers, with the most recent, Ariane 5, taking the James Webb Space Telescope and the Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer into space.<\/p>\n

Ariane 5 was retired last year and since then the European Space Agency has had to rely on the commercial sector to launch its satellites.<\/p>\n

Making an impact on European history<\/strong><\/p>\n

“Standing next to the massive Ariane 6 is indescribable,” Mr Aschbacher posted on X, before the launch.<\/p>\n

“I feel a wide range of emotions as we get ready to make an impact on European history, for Europe’s future, for generations of Europeans.”<\/p>\n

The rocket is carrying several new satellites and experiments into orbit, including a smart-farming satellite, a radio beacon demonstrator and even capsules destined to re-enter Earth’s atmosphere to test new materials.<\/p>\n

Its upper stage can reignite multiple times during flight, meaning it can take a wide range of spacecraft into orbit and then save a final boost to return and burn up in Earth’s atmosphere.<\/p>\n

Ariane 6 is 63 metres tall but it’s less powerful than other NASA, SpaceX and Chinese rockets.<\/p>\n

Its big benefit, however, is its simplicity.<\/p>\n

Ariane 6 is designed to be cheaper and easier to build – it cost an estimated \u20ac4bn (\u00a33.4bn) – which should give the ESA the ability to launch once a month if needed.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n

This post appeared first on sky.com<\/div>\n<\/div>\n

<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

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