Ariane 6 Rocket To Launch After a 4-Year Delay That Brought European Launch Industry to a Breaking Point

Ariane 6 Rocket to Launch After a 4-Year Delay That Brought European Launch Industry to a Breaking Point
(Photo: Wikimedia Commons/Bill Ingalls )

Ariane 6 rocket is set to launch after years of delays.

Europe's Ariane 6 Is Set to Launch Today

Europe's new heavy-lift Ariane 6 rocket will launch on Tuesday (July 9). Ariane 6 will launch from European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, within a four-hour window that begins at 2 p.m. EDT (1800 GMT).

The legendary Ariane 5, which retired last year after 117 missions over nearly three decades, will be replaced by the Ariane 6, operated by the French corporation Arianespace on behalf of ESA.

It has been over ten years since the Ariane 6 was first developed. Its 2020 release date was often pushed back due to technical difficulties and external events, including the COVID-19 epidemic and Russia's continuous invasion of Ukraine.

If all goes as planned, the Ariane 6 will launch nine CubeSats into low Earth orbit (LEO) on Tuesday's trip. The rocket will also carry out a number of non-orbital experiments, such as two reentry capsules that will undergo a trial by fire as they make their way back through Earth's dense atmosphere.

The mission preview from ESA stated that the rocket's upper stage will also return to Earth. However, the upper stage will burn up in the air to prevent it from becoming space debris.

Europe has great expectations for the new launcher, which should see nine or twelve flights annually by 2026. Ariane 6 will secure unhindered, independent access to space and all the scientific, Earth observation, technological advancement, and business opportunities that come with it. It will also enable Europe to carry more and go farther because of its numerous innovative capabilities.

The European Space Agency (ESA) offers live coverage of the launch. The broadcast starts 30 minutes before liftoff.

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Ariane 6 Delays Revisited

Ariane 6 was originally set to launch in 2020. Unfortunately, many things happened, forcing Europe to postpone the launch date.

Europe found itself in the awkward situation of relying on SpaceX to launch some of its most important missions into space after the Ariane 5 was retired and the Russian Soyuz rocket was taken off the market because of the conflict in Ukraine.

Lastly, there's the price factor. The target of 50 percent operational cost reduction has been lowered to 40 percent. Now, European officials claim that cost-cutting measures are not viable due to inflation. In fact, Airbus and Safran jointly hold ArianeGroup, the rocket's prime contractor for the Ariane 6 spacecraft. It requested a sizeable operating subsidy. It asked for 350 million euros annually, eliminating any cost savings from using the Ariane 6 rocket.

After ten years and billions of dollars, Europe has developed the Ariane 6 rocket, but all it has accomplished is a gap in its ability to launch satellites into orbit. The cost and delays surrounding Ariane 6 brought the European launch industry to a breaking point.