By Juliette Collen PARIS, July 6, 2023 (AFP) – Europe’s workhorse Ariane 5 rocket blasted off for a final time on Wednesday, with its farewell flight after 27 years of launches coming at a difficult time for European space efforts. Faced with soaring global competition, the continent has unexpectedly found itself without a way to independently launch heavy missions into space due to delays to the next-generation Ariane 6 and Russia withdrawing its rockets. The […]
Tag: Ariane 5
Ariane rocket puts telecom satellites into orbit
PARIS, France (AFP) — A rocket that blasted off from French Guiana successfully placed two communications satellites into orbit Saturday, launch firm Arianespace said. The Ariane 5 rocket took off at 2204 GMT from Kourou, the European Space Agency’s space centre in the South American territory, the company said in a statement. Two satellites on board — belonging to the intergovernmental provider Intelsat and Japan’s Broadcasting Satellite System Corporation — were later successfully placed into […]
Europe’s Ariane 5 rocket blasts off for 100th time
PARIS, France (AFP) — A European-made rocket has blasted off from French Guiana for the 100th time, in a symbolic landmark for its manufacturer as it comes under increasing pressure from Elon Musk’s SpaceX program. The Ariane 5 spacecraft took off from the Caribbean launch site on Tuesday at 19:38 (22:38 GMT), propelling two telecoms satellites into orbit. In service for more than two decades and capable of blasting heavy payloads into the sky, the […]
Ariane 5 satellites in orbit but not in right location
by Fred Farine Agence France-Presse KOUROU, France (AFP) — Two commercial satellites have been placed in orbit by an Ariane 5 rocket but have yet to reach their correct position, Arianespace said Thursday after mission control briefly lost contact with the craft in a rare malfunction. The usually reliable European space workhorse blasted off at 7.20 pm (2220 GMT) from the Kourou Space Center in French Guiana carrying satellites for Luxembourg’s SES and the United […]
Ariane 5 rocket puts satellites into orbit on second attempt
CAYENNE, France (AFP) — An Ariane 5 rocket put two commercial satellites into orbit after an initial attempt was aborted earlier this month, operator Arianespace said early Saturday. The rocket launched successfully from the Kourou Space Center in French Guiana on Friday, carrying the Intelsat 37e and the BSAT-4a satellites into space, Arianespace said. The launch had initially been set for September 5 but was aborted in the final countdown as the main engine was […]





