Aviation Week reports, “In a relatively complex mission, the first Ariane 6 medium- to heavy-lift launcher placed payloads into orbit in its debut flight July 9 and partially demonstrated its technology features. In a two-booster version, the so-called Ariane 62 lifted off at 4 p.m. local time (3 p.m. EDT) from Europe’s spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.”
Full Story (Aviation Week)
First launch of ESA’s Ariane 6 heavy-lift rocket
(Spaceflight Now; YouTube)
SPACE reports that the premiere “of the Space Coast’s newest launch vehicle, carrying a moon lander aiming for the first commercial touchdown, will likely slip to the beginning of 2024.” United Launch Alliance (ULA) “performed a wet dress rehearsal (WDR) of the company’s new Vulcan Centaur rocket over the weekend, which includes loading propellant into the spacecraft and running through launch-day procedures up to the moments before engine ignition.” However, the test did not go to plan. A social media post from ULA CEO Tory Bruno Sunday indicated the test “ran the timeline long so we didn’t quite finish.” Vulcan’s first launch, “which includes the rocket’s Centaur second stage, was scheduled for Dec. 24 from Cape Canaveral Space Force Station in coastal Florida.” But the incomplete WDR “means that window is likely out.” The next window “opens Jan. 8, and will last four days, the CEO clarified in a follow-up post.” Each of those opportunities “include an instantaneous launch window to accommodate the mission’s main payload: Astrobotic’s Peregrine lunar lander, headed for the moon.”
Full Story (SPACE)
The Orlando (FL) Sentinel reports that United Launch Alliance “has its missing rocket piece in hand at Cape Canaveral and all systems are go for a Christmas Eve launch to mark the debut of its Vulcan Centaur rocket.” A new Centaur upper stage “arrived by barge to the Space Coast on Monday, a replacement for the stage ULA originally planned to fly on the Certification-1 mission this past May.” That initial flight, “already delayed for nearly two years, was again put on hold after an issue with a test version of the Centaur stage was destroyed amid a massive fireball in the spring, requiring design changes to ensure a repeat didn’t happen during actual liftoff.” ULA has been anxious “to get this debut launch off the ground with its primary payload of Astrobotic Technology’s Peregrine lunar lander, part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services missions.” The lander “traveled from Astrobotic’s headquarters in Pittsburgh arriving to the Space Coast on Oct. 31.”
Full Story (Orlando Sentinel)
Space News reported that Firefly Aerospace announced Sunday its Alpha rocket failed “when one of its first-stage engines shut down seconds after liftoff.”
Full Story (Space News)
Space News reports that Firefly Aerospace’s Alpha rocket exploded two and a half minutes after its first launch Thursday. Firefly tweeted, “Alpha experienced an anomaly during first stage ascent that resulted in the loss of the vehicle.” Alpha was expected to reach supersonic speed 67 seconds after liftoff, but the rocket did not reach Mach One until 2:20 after liftoff. Alpha exploded 10 seconds after breaking the sound barrier.
Full Story (SpaceNews)