Launcher systems

Single prime contractor for the Ariane 5 system, Astrium is responsible for the delivery to Arianespace in French Guiana of a complete and fully-tested launcher out of the Launcher Integration Building. The company is also responsible for the production of all Ariane 5 stages, the vehicle equipment bay and flight software, along with numerous sub-assemblies.

The new-generation Ariane 5 continues the tradition of its famous predecessor, Ariane 4 – which over 14 years set the standard for European collaborative projects with over 200 satellites launched – but features a radically new design. Considerably more powerful, with dual and multiple payload capacity, it meets the evolving demands of both commercial and government customers. It incorporates a new cryogenic upper stage carrying over 14 tonnes of propellants, and a strengthened cryogenic main stage, powered by the new Vulcain 2 engine.

To complement Ariane 5’s launch capability, Astrium is the main shareholder in Starsem and Eurockot Launch Services, the companies which market the Soyuz and Rockot launchers, perfectly designed for delivery of smaller payloads to low Earth or sun-synchronous orbits, and for interplanetary missions.

Eurockot provides commercial launch services to operators from dedicated satellite preparation, launch and customer facilities at Plesetsk Cosmodrome in Northern Russia.

Soyuz launches currently take place from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in the Republic of Kazakhstan, central Asia. As of 2009, Soyuz rockets will also be launched from the Guiana Space Centre, Europe’s spaceport at Kourou, French Guiana, and operated by Arianespace.

What kind of launch vehicle will we be relying on to ensure Europe’s access to space in the future? The possibilities are vast, and a number of critical technical and economic solutions are to be explored.

ESA’s Future Launchers Preparatory Programme (FLPP), bringing together existing national initiatives, is supporting development of the technologies needed for the post-Ariane 5 generation of launchers – expendable, reusable or somewhere in-between – while satisfying the market’s stringent economic requirements. Astrium is already making preparations to continue its leadership on the programmes of tomorrow, with the development at an advanced stage of technology demonstrators.