Welcome everyone! It's time for the first operational launch of Ariane 6!

| Scheduled for (UTC) | 2025-03-03 16:24 | |

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| | Scheduled for (local) | 2025-03-03 13:24 (GFT) | | Launch site | ELA-4, Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana | | Launch vehicle | Ariane 62 | | Payload | CSO-3 | | Mission success criteria | Successful launch and deployment of payloads into Sun-Synchronous Orbit |

Livestreams

| Stream | Link | |

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| | Arianespace (English) | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=K2VwcNCIX44 | | Arianespace (Français) | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=B2-NtVR8OiQ | | Space Affairs | https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=hAEVfzW5xWc |

Stats

☑️ 1st Ariane 6 mission of 2025, 2nd overall

☑️ 1st Arianespace mission of 2025, 300th overall

Payload info

The French CSO (Composante Spatiale Optique) high-resolution reconnaissance satellites are the optical space component of the MUSIS program that will replace the current Hélios 2 military observation satellites.

CNES, the French space agency, has notified Astrium that the DGA (Direction Générale de l'Armement), the French arms procurement agency, has awarded the company a 795€ million contract for two satellites for the CSO program. The contract also includes an option for a third satellite.

As the prime contractor for the CSO satellites programme, Astrium will provide the agile platform and avionics, and will also be responsible for the integration work, testing, and delivery of the satellites to CNES. Thales Alenia Space will provide Astrium with very high-resolution optical instruments.

Please feel free to post updates and questions in the comments!

Sentinel-2C was launched in September 2024 aboard the final Vega rocket and was intended to replace Sentinel-2A. However, ESA has now granted Sentinel-2A a one-year exceptional and temporary extension, which will begin in March.

“Sentinel-2A will not retire yet,” said Christoph Kautz, Director for Satellite Navigation and Earth Observation at DG DEFIS.

Preparations for Sentinel-2A’s mission extension began in January 2025, with manoeuvres initiated to reposition the satellite by early March 2025. With this new orbital configuration, the average revisit time of the Sentinel-2 constellation will be drastically reduced.

POLARIS Spaceplanes is developing AURORA, a multipurpose spaceplane and hypersonic transport system. Before beginning work directly on AURORA, the company has focused on developing and testing progressively larger demonstrators, the latest being a pair of identical five-metre-long vehicles, MIRA II and MIRA III.

In a 27 February update, POLARIS revealed that it had received a BAAINBw contract to design a fully reusable hypersonic research vehicle. The contract describes the vehicle as a hypersonic testbed and experimental platform for defence-related applications, as well as scientific and institutional research. A secondary role of the vehicle will be to serve as a small satellite launch system when equipped with an expendable upper stage.

SpaceForest was founded in 2011 and is developing an 11.5-metre suborbital rocket capable of carrying up to 50 kilograms to an altitude of 150 kilometres. The company conducted two initial PERUN test flights in 2023, but both suffered anomalies that forced mission aborts before the rockets reached the 50-kilometre target.

Toward the end of 2024, the company completed an initial test firing of an SF-1000 engine with its upgraded combustion chamber, which lasted 25 seconds. In a 26 February update, SpaceForest revealed that it had followed the initial test with a full-duration hot fire test lasting 39 seconds. This marks a key milestone, as 39 seconds is the required burn time to launch the PERUN rocket into space. The test was conducted at the Central Air Force Test Range in Ustka, Poland.

The next and final SF-1000 rocket engine hot fire test will validate the company’s Thrust Vector Control system. Once completed, SpaceForest will move forward with an initial test flight of PERUN, equipped with its upgraded propulsion system. According to the company, the flight is expected to take place “in a few months” and will carry the rocket’s first research payloads.

Space Rider’s Re-entry Module is designed to be reused for up to six missions with minimal refurbishment between flights. A key component of the thermal protection system that will enable this capability is the vehicle’s Body Flaps, a pair of movable aerodynamic surfaces located at the rear of the Re-entry Module. These flaps play a crucial role in controlling the vehicle’s attitude and stability during atmospheric re-entry. By adjusting these flaps, the spacecraft can maintain its pitch and roll, ensuring a controlled descent through various stages of re-entry and recovery.

In a 20 February update, CIRA announced that it had completed all qualification tests for the Space Rider Body Flaps, allowing it to move forward with the manufacture of the first flight-ready iterations.

The inaugural flight of Space Rider is currently expected to launch aboard a Vega C rocket in 2027.

The Łukasiewicz Research Network’s Institute of Aviation has successfully completed its second hot-fire test campaign for the Throttleable Liquid Propulsion Demonstrator rocket engine.

Development of the Throttleable Liquid Propulsion Demonstrator (TLPD) is led by a consortium of Polish companies under ESA’s Future Launchers Preparatory Programme. The engine uses high-test peroxide and ethanol and is capable of producing 5 kN of thrust.

The next phase of the engine’s development will involve upgrading it to a “flight-like” engine. According to a 25 February ESA update, this phase of the project has a budget of €5 million and will last two years.

Once completed, the upgraded variant of the Throttleable Liquid Propulsion Demonstrator engine will be designed for integration into a lander for Moon or Mars missions or for spacecraft focused on space debris removal or in-orbit servicing.

Founded in 2019, Magdrive is developing a range of high-thrust electric propulsion systems for satellites and spacecraft. The company is currently working toward an initial test flight of its Rouge thruster aboard a D-Orbit mission in June. Rouge is the smallest of the three propulsion systems under development.

The company states that its propulsion systems use “solid metal as propellant,” which can be “sourced and refueled from recycled ‘space junk’ or other in-space sources.” This capability is a key element of its broader ambition to scale up its propulsion system for use in in-space servicing spacecraft, large-scale constellation management, and interplanetary travel.

Avio announced that it had begun the development of its Multi-Purpose Green Engine (MPGE) in March 2023, when it received a €55 million PNRR (National Recovery and Resilience Plan) grant from the Italian Space Agency (ASI). The engine runs on hydrogen peroxide and kerosene.

In a 24th February update, Avio announced that it had completed the first ignition tests of the MPGE on a purpose-built test bench. According to the company, the engine performed as expected and achieved combustion efficiency that exceeded expectations.

In its original 2023 announcement, Avio stated that the engine would be used aboard a yet-to-be-introduced Vega orbital stage and the Space Rider reusable spacecraft, developed by Avio in partnership with Thales Alenia Space under a European Space Agency contract, among other applications. In its most recent update, the company stated that it would be used for “both launch systems and orbital and suborbital space applications.”

Spanish launch provider PLD Space has signed an agreement with Oman’s Etlaq Spaceport, securing it as the company’s second launch site for the Miura 5 rocket.

Miura 5 is a 35.7-metre, two-stage rocket that will, once operational, be capable of delivering up to 1,080 kilograms to low Earth orbit. The rocket will initially be launched from a new commercial launch facility being built on the grounds of the Guiana Space Centre in French Guiana. The inaugural flight of Miura 5 is currently expected to take place in the first quarter of 2026.

On 20 February, during the first annual Etlaq Launch Conference in Muscat, Oman, PLD Space signed an agreement to secure a launch pad at the Etlaq Spaceport, which it will use to “meet the needs of its customers in the Eastern market.”

Isar Aerospace has announced the completion of the final tests on its Spectrum rocket, paving the way for its inaugural flight. The company stated that the launch will take place “as soon as possible” following approval and licensing from the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority.

Spectrum is a two-stage rocket that is designed to be capable of carrying up to 1,000 kilograms to low Earth orbit. The rocket will initially be launched from the Andøya Spaceport in Norway, which was officially inaugurated in November 2024.

In a 21 February update, Isar revealed that it had completed a 30-second integrated static fire test of the rocket’s first stage on 14 February, qualifying the stage for Spectrum’s inaugural flight. The company also confirmed that the rocket’s second stage had been qualified for flight following a static fire test in the third quarter of 2023.

“We are almost ready for the test flight,” said Isar CEO Daniel Metzler. “All we need is the license.”

The launch window for Spectrum’s first test flight will be set as part of the Norwegian Civil Aviation Authority’s licensing process, marking the final regulatory step before liftoff.

"Cross validations of the #Aeolus aerosol products and new developments with airborne high spectral resolution #lidar measurements above the Tropical #Atlantic during #JATAC"- paper by
@TROPOS in discussion & under review for #AMT > https://egusphere.copernicus.org/preprints/2025/egusphere-2025-462/ / @esa @eurogeosciences

The German aerospace agency DLR has signed on to be an anchor customer for The Exploration Company’s microgravity research service aboard its Nyx spacecraft.

Nyx is a modular, reusable space capsule that will initially be used to transport cargo to and from low Earth orbit and to host in-orbit experiments. In May 2024, The Exploration Company was selected by the European Space Agency as one of two companies working toward a demonstration mission to deliver cargo to the International Space Station in 2028. The other company selected was Thales Alenia Space.

On 20 February, during its DLR TecDays in Bonn, the German aerospace agency announced that it had signed a contract with The Exploration Company and would serve as an anchor customer for its microgravity research service. The contract secures space for 160 kilograms of scientific payloads aboard the inaugural flight of the Nyx Earth capsule in 2028.

Gestern war Josef Aschbacher, Generaldirektor der Europäischen Weltraumorganisation @esa und Alumnus @uniinnsbruck zu Gast in Innsbruck.

Astronaut*innen: Wusstet ihr, dass aus 22.500 Bewerber*innen am Ende nur etwa 17 ausgewählt werden? Das Auswahlverfahren dauert zwei Jahre – wow!

Die Expert:innen werden nicht müde zu betonen, dass der Asteroid 2024 YR4 keine ernsthafte Gefahr für uns darstellt. Tatsächlich nimmt ja die Wahrscheinlichkeit auch ab.

Dennoch hat mich interessiert, was denn getan werden kann, um Asteroiden abzulenken, die auf die Erde zusteuern. Richard Moissl von der @esa hat meine Fragen beantwortet.

#Asteroid #asteroid2024yr4 #ESA #NASA #Astronomie

https://t3n.de/news/wie-gefaehrlich-wird-der-asteroid-2024-yr4-wir-haben-einen-esa-experten-gefragt-1674259/

ATMOS is currently preparing for an initial test flight of its PHOENIX capsule, which is designed to host up to 100 kilograms of in-orbit experiments before returning them safely to Earth. The capsule relies on an inflatable heat shield to withstand the rigours of reentry. This initial test flight is expected to launch aboard a SpaceX Falcon 9 rocket no earlier than April 2025.

On 17 February, the company announced that it had secured €13.1 million in new funding from the EIC Accelerator Programme, comprising a non-refundable grant and an investment component. The company stated that the funding will be used to expand its engineering and testing capabilities and accelerate the development of its next-generation PHOENIX 2 capsule. In its official press release, ATMOS noted that as part of the award, it is required to complete “two PHOENIX 2 flights within a specified timeframe.”

UK-based rocket builder Orbex has revealed that it is counting on a positive outcome from its European Launch Challenge bid to fund the development of its medium-lift rocket, Proxima, citing a “challenging investment climate.”

The European Space Agency initiated the European Launcher Challenge in November 2023 to support the development of sovereign launch capabilities and, ultimately, a successor to the Ariane 6. While the exact format of the challenge has not yet been confirmed, initial reports have indicated that it will include multiple awards of €150 million each.

The European Space Agency announced Feb. 14 that John McFall, a reserve member of the agency’s astronaut corps, had been certified by a multinational medical board for long-duration missions to the ISS.

The certification is noteworthy because McFall lost his right leg in a motorcycle accident at the age of 19 and wears a prosthesis. He is the first person with such a disability to be medically approved to train for missions to the station.

“John is today certified as an astronaut who can fly on a long-duration mission on the International Space Station, and I think this is an incredible step ahead in our ambition to broaden the access to society to space,” Daniel Neuenschwander, ESA’s director of human and robotic exploration, said at a briefing to announce the certification.

ESA selected McFall as part of an astronaut class announced in 2022. That selection process included an effort by ESA to pick what it called at the time a “parastronaut” to see if people with some physical disabilities could safely fly to space.

Since his selection, McFall has participated in a feasibility study called “Fly!” that looked for any issues that might prevent him from going to the station, including both his health and overall safety of ISS operations.

“Let’s not underestimate all elements linked to safety procedures when you operate on the International Space Station,” said Neuenschwander. “In all honesty, I was personally expecting some eventual showstoppers there, and I’m really happy to see that we went through that and it’s behind us.”

With co-financing from the French space agency CNES, The Exploration Company kicked off the development of its Typhoon rocket engine in early 2024. According to its website, the company’s full-flow staged combustion cycle reusable rocket engine is designed to produce 200 tonnes of thrust. However, a recent LinkedIn update suggests the company has revised its projections to 250 tonnes.

On 13 February, The Exploration Company announced the successful completion of the first test campaign for the engine’s oxygen-rich pre-burner. According to the update, a total of 16 tests were conducted, including cold flow trials, hybrid ignitions, and full-firing attempts, with the company achieving approximately 16 seconds of stable combustion.

During a keynote address at the Perspectives Spatiales 2025 event in Paris, European Commissioner for Defence Industry and Space Andrius Kubilius outlined the challenging position the European space sector finds itself in.

“Commercial sales are down. Exports are down. Profits are down. And this comes at a time when we need space more than ever. For our security. For our survival.”

Commissioner Kubilius identified the continent’s sovereign access to space as vital for Europe’s strategic autonomy. While he acknowledged that introducing Ariane 6 and returning Vega C to flight were “important steps,” he highlighted the need for Europe to accelerate its work on launchers, mastering key technologies including reusability and return capabilities.

Spanish propulsion startup Arkadia Space announced a contract Feb. 11 to supply monopropellant thrusters to MaiaSpace, a French startup backed by ArianeGroup that is developing a reusable small launch vehicle.

Arkadia Space will supply 250-newton thrusters designed for the Reaction Control System of the MaiaSpace launcher.