ShareEurope's Ariane 6 successfully completes inaugural flight
On July 9, Europe’s newest rocket made its maiden flight, propelled by cryogenic fuels.
Ariane 6 is the latest in Europe’s Ariane rocket series, taking over from Ariane 5. Ariane 6 successfully carried out its first flight on July 9, 2024.
Ariane 6 features a modular design which canallowing to launch multiple passengers to different orbits in a single flight.
The main stage is powered by a liquid oxygen and hydrogen engine. The propellants used by Ariane 6 are supercooled to –180°C for the oxygen and –253°C for the hydrogen fuel.
At these temperatures, any humidity already in the pipes would immediately freeze and could lead to blocked valves. To avoid this, any hint of air or moisture from the atmosphere is flushed out of the system by helium, an unreactive gas, helium, before fuelling begins.
On its first mission, Ariane 6 launched several satellites and experiments from space agencies, companies, research institutes, and universities.
For more information, please visit the European Space Agency (ESA) website.
Sources
Ariane 6 the day of launch. https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2024/07/Ariane_6_the_day_of_launch
Image source: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Images/2024/07/Ariane_6_the_day_of_launch