Soon the retirement for the Ariane 5 rocket which carried out one of its last missions successfully this Tuesday evening, placing in orbit the meteorological satellite MTG-I1 and the telecommunications satellites Galaxy 35 and Galaxy 36.
The rocket took off at 5:30 p.m. local time, 9:30 p.m. Paris time, from the Kourou Space Center in French Guiana, an AFP journalist noted.
For its third and final mission of the year, Ariane 5 placed the three satellites in geostationary orbit between 27 and 34 minutes after takeoff.
ArianeGroup applauds @Arianespace, our partners, our colleagues, and of course, all of you who share our space dream.
#ArianeGroup #VA259 #Ariane5 #SpaceEnablershttps://t.co/3mOAAj9fSY pic.twitter.com/PbQaUbBMx9
— ArianeGroup (@ArianeGroup) December 13, 2022
A special mission given the total weight of the payloads - 10.9 tons - which makes it the second most efficient launch in the entire history of the Ariane 5 rocket. Special also because of the very configuration of the launch which sends three satellites in space at the same time.
Since Ariane launchers have existed, this arrangement has occurred only three times.
“And one and two and three, there are no zeros tonight, only winners.
We are very happy that Ariane has still done the job,” said Stéphane Israël, President of Arianespace, after the launch.
detect storms
Launched on behalf of the European organization for the exploitation of meteorological satellites Eumetsat, the MTG-I1 satellite will make it possible to quickly detect and predict extreme weather events in advance in order to alert inhabitants, authorities and rescuers of Europe and Africa.
Read alsoFires, thunderstorms, tornadoes: a new weather satellite put into orbit to better prevent dangers
Galaxy 35 and Galaxy 36, dedicated to telecommunications, are coming to renew the fleet of the operator Intelstat for the North American market.
These two satellites will enhance television broadcasting capabilities of major sporting events in the United States and improve the reception of cable channels.
"I came to realize on the spot the complexity and the dynamics of space in order to then promote and support this French know-how", declared Sylvie Retailleau, the Minister of Research and Higher Education who came to attend the launch. from the Jupiter control room with the Minister Delegate for Overseas Departments Jean-François Carenco.
Ariane5, 115th shot!
Congratulations to all the teams involved in this success.
For more than 20 years, the regularity with which Ariane5 has carried its satellites into space has made it one of the most reliable launchers in the world.
pic.twitter.com/uK4CquWRvv
— Sylvie Retailleau (@sretailleau) December 13, 2022
This 115th Ariane 5 mission is also one of its last.
Two other launches are planned for the first half of next year before its big sister Ariane 6 takes over in the last quarter of 2023. "And its order book is full as an egg", rejoiced the president of 'Arianespace.
