AEROSPATIALE MATRA LANCEURS WINS PRIZE AT VIRTUAL 2000 IN LAVAL

For its first participation at Laval Virtual, the virtual reality trade show, AEROSPATIALE MATRA LANCEURS won the trophy in the industrial category : transportation and aerospace. The prize awards an interactive program which reconstitutes Ariane 5’s missions.

AEROSPATIALE MATRA LANCEURS has developed a virtual reality tool which provides three dimensional restitution of an Ariane 5 mission. It is possible to follow in reconstituted time, the launcher from ignition up to the final phase when the satellites are positioned in orbit. Better still, the program’s interactivity makes it possible to stop a sequence in a critical phase, change the viewpoint, or visualize the launcher’s trajectory and its tracking by radar stations.

Applications of virtual reality are numerous. Three dimensional imagery makes it possible to understand certain dynamic aspects of a trajectory better, such as the reconstitution of the Ariane 502 launch for example. These images are also used to explore future missions, for instance, in pre-launch reviews, as an animated tool for technical presentations of missions that AEROSPATIALE MATRA LANCEURS makes as industrial architect of Ariane 5. They allow the customers to visualize the positioning of their satellites in orbit as it will actually happen. An application developed in 1999, aims to better understand the many constraints associated with the conditions of putting satellites in orbit, and the non pollution of payloads by the attitude control system. Because of this software, which enables visualization of flux, it is possible now to reduce the time of preparation for this critical sequence in Ariane 5 flights, while ensuring customers that the orbital positioning of their satellites will take place under the best possible conditions.

In the framework of its role as prime contractor for the European Space Agency (ESA), AEROSPATIALE MATRA LANCEURS has recently modelized the docking of the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) with the International Space Station. ATV is a logistics vehicle servicing the station.

Both of these programs were recipients of the Laval Virtual 2000 prize awarded last May 20th.