Like its predecessors, Ariane 5 introduced improvements over Ariane 4. Work on Ariane 5 began in January 1985, and its first launch took place in 1996. The series enjoyed notable success, launching half of global commercial satellites at the time. This organization made Ariane an early player in the history of commercial launchers.Īriane 1 was followed by updated versions Ariane 2, 3, and 4. ESA then formed the private company Arianespace to manage the commercialization of the Ariane rocket program. The French space agency (CNES, National Centre for Space Studies, Centre national d'études spatiales) and industry partners from France and other European states including Sweden and West Germany developed Ariane 1. Such a rocket would give Europe independent access to space, and thereby lower its reliance on the two superpowers, most often the United States. One of ESA’s early projects-building on the long-time French priority-was the development of a European launch vehicle. The work for the first Ariane launcher-Ariane 1-began in the mid-1970s, when western European countries increasingly sought to integrate their spaceflight ventures, leading to the founding of the European Space Agency (ESA). Flight VA261, the final launch of Ariane 5, on July 5, 2023.Īriane 5’s history was central to the story of 21st century spaceflight, and indeed, the rocket drew from a long history stretching back decades.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |