4 Galileo navigation satellites sent in flight by Ariane 5



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Heather Smith

July 25, 2018

  An Ariane 5 ES rocket is launched to send four Galileo navigation satellites in space. Photo credit: Arianespace

An Ariane 5 ES rocket is launched to send four Galileo navigation satellites in space. Photo credit: Arianespace

After a mission shutdown of almost four months, Arianespace launched an Ariane 5 ES rocket from its South American spaceport in French Guiana to send four Galileo navigation satellites into orbit for the global navigation system. satellite navigation of Europe. The flight was the first of a global launch double feature as less than 15 minutes later, the SpaceX Falcon 9 was leaving the US west coast to send 10 Iridium NEXT satellites in orbit for Iridium Communications. ] One of the four Galileo satellites is coupled to the payload adapter before being encapsulated in the fairing of the Ariane 5 payload. Photo credit: Arianespace "width =" 500 "height =" 708 "srcset =" http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/7-6-2018-VA244-2.jpg 594w, http: //www.spaceflightinsider .com / wp-content / uploads / 2018/07 / 7-6-2018-VA244-2-212×300.jpg 212w, http://www.spaceflightinsider.com/wp-content/uploads/2018/07/7- 6-2018-VA244-2-463×655.jpg 463w "sizes =" (max-width: 500px) 100vw, 500px "/>

One of the four Galileo satellites is coupled to the adapter of payload before being encapsulated in the fairing of the payload of Ariane 5. Photo credit: Arianespace

For Arianespace, it was the mission VA244 . Galileo satellites – Nos 23, 24, 25 and 26) are launched on behalf of the European Commission The takeoff took place at 7:25 am EDT (11:25 GMT) on 25 July illet 2018, from Kourou, French Guiana. To date, 26 satellites have been launched since 2011-12 over the past three years with the Ariane 5 rocket – the constellation is expected to be fully operational by 2020.

year, and the third with Ariane 5, Arianespace has proudly completed its 10th mission for the Galileo program, "said Arianespace CEO, Stephane Israel, in a statement ." I would like to thank the European Commission, and in particular DG GROW, as well as the European Space Agency, for their continued confidence. More than ever, Arianespace confirms its mission to guarantee independent and reliable access to space for Europe. "

The Galileo satellites are manufactured by OHB Systems in Germany with the launch of Arianespace under contract with the European Space Agency.The launch and first phase of the orbit were carried out by the Galileo SpaceOpal operators with CNES (the French Space Agency) under the responsibility of the GSA European satellite navigation systems.

Ariane 5 takeoff [19659021] When the countdown reached zero, the Ariane 5 155 feet (47 meters) ignited its Vulcain 2 engine with liquid hydrogen / liquid oxygen.After about seven seconds, the engine reached its full thrust and both side-mounted solid rocket boosters ignited the vehicle, resulting in a combined thrust of 15.120 kilonewtons (3.4 million pounds)

After about two minutes, 20 seconds the dual propeller separated e He fell, having consumed his thruster. Some seven minutes later, the basic stage was consuming its fuel and was also separating, leaving the upper stage in control of the mission. During its ascent, the payload sank after the rocket reached 100 km (62 miles).

The second phase with its Aestus engine burned monomethylhydrazine and nitrous tetroxide propellant to produce about 6,100 pounds (27 kilonewtons) of thrust for about 10 minutes before cutting. He carried the Galileo satellites in a ballistic trajectory for about three hours, eight minutes before firing a second time – this time for about six minutes to place the satellites in a circular orbit at 23,400 kilometers (14,400 miles). At the end of the second engraving, the Galileo distributor releases the first two satellites followed by the second 20 minutes later

Galileo is the only satellite navigation system based in Europe that provides positioning, navigation and navigation services. synchronization. The distributor built for the Galileo missions has the role of maintaining four satellites to secure the takeoff and launch them safely in a flight of nearly four hours to the Middle Earth Orbit (MEO)

. The next series is expected to take place over an Ariane 6 rocket in 2020 at the earliest, as this propeller is still in development.

While the Galileo constellation is operational from December 2016, it will only be fully operational at least until 2020, when the full constellation will include 24 operational satellites and six active spares. However, more than 100 million electronic devices use the system today.

Flight VA244 had a number of durations "for an Ariane 5 mission. According to ESA, this is the last flight of the Ariane variant 5 ES, the last with an average fairing, the last flight to use a third stage EPS and the last launch without the use of cryo-arm launch site ELA-3.

The maiden flight of the Ariane 5 ES took place in March 2008 with the mission of the Jules Verne automatic transfer vehicle to replenish the International Space Station.This cargo vehicle has also been retired since

It is the 99th launch of the International Space Station. Ariane 5 and the third in 2018. In total, Arianespace has launched four missions this year, including a Soyuz 2.1b rocket in March.The organization plans to fly its next mission on August 21 with the flight of the rocket Vega The next mission of Ariane 5 is scheduled for September 5.

Courtesy of Arianespace

Marked: Ariane 5 ArianeSpace ESA European Union Galileo Kourou Kourou French Guiana Leads Stories VA244

Heather Smith

Heather Smith's fascination with space exploration – started at the tender age of twelve while She was on a sixth grade trip to Kenner, Louisiana, walking through a model of the International Space Station and seeing the "pot of space" (her terminology has progressed considerably since) – she realized this moment that his future rested in the stars.

Smith realized that very few people have noticed how much space technology has improved their lives. She has since devoted herself to correcting this problem. Inspired by a clbadic literature like Anne Frank's Diary, she honed her writing skills and signed on as the Spaceflight Group's coordinator for the organization's social media efforts.

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