Ariane 6 completes moist costume rehearsal

WASHINGTON — Europe’s Ariane 6 rocket has accomplished a fueling check and countdown rehearsal that’s the last main milestone earlier than its inaugural launch in July.

The European Area Company mentioned June 21 that the company and its companions accomplished a moist costume rehearsal the day gone by on the launch website in French Guiana. Within the check, the rocket was loaded with liquid oxygen and liquid hydrogen propellants and went by way of a countdown that stopped simply earlier than engine ignition.

“The moist costume rehearsal is the very last milestone earlier than launch,” mentioned Man Pilchen, Ariane 6 launcher challenge supervisor at ESA, in an announcement. The check, a standard one for brand spanking new launch autos, permits automobile groups “to fine-tune the fragile operations required up till liftoff, utilizing the actual rocket’s precise flight {hardware} and software program for the primary time,” he famous.

The check was initially scheduled for June 18 however delayed two days. ESA officers mentioned at a June 19 briefing after a gathering of the ESA Council that the slip was not linked to any main issues and wouldn’t delay the automobile’s inaugural launch, introduced earlier within the month for July 9.

“The preparations in the direction of the inaugural flight are actually, actually progressing effectively,” ESA Director Common Josef Aschbacher mentioned at that briefing. That included a closeout of remaining points from a qualification assessment of the automobile, accomplished June 14, and set up of the payloads and fairing on the rocket’s higher stage the identical day.

“There isn’t a showstopper, so all the pieces proceeds nominally, however there may be nonetheless, in fact, a variety of work to be executed in the direction of the inaugural flight,” he mentioned.

The ESA assertion concerning the completion of the moist costume rehearsal added that evaluation of knowledge from it might proceed to June 26. ESA has additionally scheduled a sequence of media briefings June 25 to debate pre-launch preparations.

Ariane 6 is vital to efforts by ESA to finish a “launcher disaster” that has quickly disadvantaged Europe of impartial entry to house. A number of components induced the disaster, resembling delays within the growth of Ariane 6 that pushed its introduction to after the ultimate launch of the Ariane 5 almost a yr in the past, issues with the Vega C rocket which have sidelined the automobile since a failure a yr and a half in the past, and lack of entry to the Soyuz rocket after Russia’s invasion of Ukraine greater than two years in the past.

ESA introduced in November 2023 an settlement for “stabilized exploitation” of the Ariane 6 and Vega C that included offering 340 million euros ($364 million) a yr of economic assist for the Ariane 6. That settlement requires the businesses creating Ariane 6 to cut back their prices by 11%.

“We’re on monitor for that,” Aschbacher mentioned of that discount on the briefing. “A lot of discussions have taken place with a few of the key suppliers,” he added, with “good progress within the final couple of days.”

“We’re making regular progress,” mentioned Toni Tolker-Nielsen, ESA’s director of house transportation, concerning that price discount. He mentioned an unnamed German companion on the automobile had agreed to implement that value minimize, “in order that’s a significant step forward.”

The November 2023 settlement additionally referred to as for transferring the accountability for Vega C launch companies from Arianespace to Avio, the prime contractor for the rocket. Avio executives mentioned final month that discussions about that switch had been nonetheless in progress.

Aschbacher mentioned that ESA had been referred to as in to mediate negotiations between the 2 corporations in current weeks on the settlement at hand over Vega C operations on the request of one of many corporations. “The situations for the switch of Vega C from Arianespace to Avio are clear,” he mentioned. “We now have made huge progress and are very shut, I might say, to having closed the open objects.” He didn’t elaborate on the problems that required ESA’s mediation.

The ESA Council was scheduled to take up a decision approving that switch on the assembly that concluded June 19, however Aschbacher mentioned the council will as an alternative maintain an separate assembly by the tip of the month to finalize the switch.

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