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The European Space Agency (ESA) satellite launcher Ariane 6 rocket moves to the launch pad prior its lift off at the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana, on July 9, 2024.  Jody Amiet | Afp | Getty Images The powerful European-built Ariane 6 rocket made its long-awaited liftoff on Tuesday, as the region returned to a launch market dominated by Elon Musk’s SpaceX. Ariane 6, standing over 200 feet tall and powered by its Vulcain engine and a pair of boosters, launched from Kourou in French Guiana at 3 p.m. ET. The rocket is a combined effort of about $4.5 billion overseen by the European Space Agency (ESA) and built by ArianeGroup – an Airbus and Safran joint venture. Thirteen nations contribute to the Ariane 6 program. It’s the latest in a European rocket lineage dating to the 1970s, and succeeds the Ariane 5, which launched 117 times until it retired last year. Ariane 6 comes in two versions: Ariane 62, with two solid rocket boosters that can deliver as much as 10,000 kilograms of cargo to low Earth orbit (LEO); and Ariane 64, a model with four solid rockets boosters which can carry as many as 21,000 kilograms to LEO. In the launch market, Ariane 6 falls in the “heavy” class of rockets. Ariane 6’s debut flight is a demonstration mission for ESA, and will haul a variety of small satellites and spacecraft. After liftoff, the flight will last nearly three hours before it completes the deployment of 11 spacecraft, and also includes a key series of tests of the rocket’s upper stage engine. Delayed debut The European Space Agency (ESA) satellite launcher Ariane 6 rocket is seen prior to its maiden launch at the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana, on July 9, 2024.  Jody Amiet…

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Filed under: News - @ July 9, 2024 7:24 pm