PREVIEW

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Europe’s new heavy-lift rocket, Ariane 6, made its much-anticipated inaugural flight from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana at 8 pm BST on Tuesday (9July2024).
Ariane 6, the latest in Europe’s prestigious Ariane rocket series can undertake missions ranging from low-Earth orbit to deep space exploration.
"A completely new rocket is not launched often, and success is far from guaranteed. I am privileged to have witnessed this historic moment when Europe's new generation of the Ariane family lifted off – successfully – effectively reinstating European access to space,” said ESA’s Director General Josef Aschbacher.
This inaugural flight, designated VA262, served as a demonstration of Ariane 6's capabilities. Despite being a test flight, it carried several non-human ‘passengers’. One hour after liftoff, at 21:06 BST, the first set of satellites was released into an orbit 600 km above Earth. These satellites and experiments came from various space agencies, companies, research institutes, universities, and young professionals.
The successful launch also validated the new custom-built launch pad and operations at Europe’s Spaceport. Built by France’s space agency CNES, the dedicated launch zone promises a faster turnover of Ariane launches.
Philippe Baptiste, CEO of CNES, said: “With this first successful launch by Ariane 6, Europe has finally recovered its capacity to access space. I want to acknowledge the commitment of the teams at CNES, ESA, ArianeGroup, Arianespace, and our subcontractors. Europe can be proud of its space programme, knowledge, and expertise.”
Martin Sion, CEO of ArianeGroup, added: “This historic launch demonstrates the unfailing commitment of our teams and partners. Seeing Europe’s new launcher lift off into space marks the culmination of an outstanding technical and technological adventure and the beginning of a long history of Ariane 6 operations.”
Following the successful satellite deployment, Ariane 6’s upper stage will further demonstrate its capabilities by restarting its Vinci engine, showcasing its ability to place multiple payloads into different orbits and safely deorbit to avoid space debris.
This flight also includes the release of two reentry capsules designed to burn up harmlessly upon reentering Earth’s atmosphere.
The next Ariane 6 launch, planned for later this year, will be its first commercial flight under Arianespace.
Stéphane Israël, CEO of Arianespace, remarked: “The success of this first flight marks the start of Ariane 6’s operational career, giving Europe autonomous access to space. The new launcher’s order book is proof of its versatility and capacity to accomplish a wide range of missions. We are eager to begin operating our new launcher.”