After a slight delay in the schedule, the new rocket Vega-C ESA was successfully launched this Wednesday from the European spaceport in Kurú, French Guiana, at 15:13 (Spanish peninsular time).
This maiden flight, named VV21, lasted about 2 hours and 15 minutes, from takeoff to cargo release and upper stage engine combustion.
The main load was LARES-2, the satellite of an Italian Space Agency (ASI) science mission that was placed into its planned orbit. were also transported six CubeSats surveys from France, Italy and Slovenia as secondary loads.
The total mass of the cargo at take-off was approx. 474kg: 296 kg corresponded to LARES-2 and the rest to CubeSats, payload adapters and transport structures.
The Vega-C has much greater capacities than its predecessor, Vega, which has been in operation since 2012. With new first and second stages and an improved fourth stage, the Vega-C increases the Vega’s performance from 1.5 tonnes to around of 2.3 tons in a reference polar orbit of 700 km.
The Vega-C incorporates a new, more powerful first stage, the P120C, based on Vega’s P80. Above it is a new second stage, Zefiro-40, and below it is the same third stage Zefiro-9 used on Vega.
The reusable upper stage is also improved. AVUM+ has increased liquid-burning capability to deliver payloads to multiple orbits based on mission requirements and to allow longer run times in space, thus enabling longer missions.
The P120C engine will serve dual duty, with two or four units acting as coupled boosters for the Ariane 6. Sharing this component improves industrial efficiency and improves the profitability of both launchers.
Comparison of the Vega Vega rocket, the current Vega-C and the future Vega-E. / THIS
With its larger main stages and larger fairing – which doubles the payload volume compared to the Vega – the Vega-C is 34.8 meters tall, nearly five meters taller than the Vega.
The new launcher configuration offers a significant improvement in launch system flexibility. Vega-C can launch larger satellites, two main payloads or accommodate various arrangements for ride-sharing missions. ESA’s next Space Rider Earth Return Vehicle will launch into orbit with the Vega-C.
Director of Space Transport at ESA, Daniel Neuenschwandertasked with overseeing launch operations from the spaceport’s mission control, said: “Today we usher in a new era of European launch solutions, starting with Vega-C and complemented by Ariane 6.”
charge orbiting
LARES-2’s precise orbital path will be followed by lasers from ground stations. The aim is to measure the effect of ‘framework drag’, a distortion of space-time caused by the rotation of a huge body like the Earth, as predicted by Einstein in his theory of general relativity. Its predecessor, the similar LARES, was the main payload on Vega’s maiden flight in 2012.
Six CubeSats formed a secondary payload package. AstroBio CubeSat (Italy) will test a solution to detect biomolecules in space. Greencube (Italy) conducts an experiment to grow plants in microgravity. ALPHA (Italy) aims to help understand phenomena related to Earth’s magnetosphere, such as the Northern and Southern Lights.
Three other CubeSats, Trisat-R (Slovenia), MTCube-2 (France) and Celesta (France) will study the effects of a harsh radiation environment on electronic systems.
The future Vega-E is underway
In parallel with the start-up of Vega-C operations, development work continues. Another variant, Vega-E, will offer a simplified architecture from 2026 onwards, replacing the third and fourth stages of the Vega-C with a new cryogenic upper stage. The key to the Vega-E lies in the European-made M10 engine, which uses more environmentally sustainable fuels — cryogenic liquid oxygen and methane — and also features an advanced pressure control system that allows for multiple stops and restarts. in space. The main contractor, Avio, recently completed its first series of fire tests.
The VV21 was managed by ESA, which owns the Vega-C program and oversees its development. This inaugural flight paves the way for the start of exploration by Arianespace and Avio.
Following the success of Vega, Member States agreed at the ESA ministerial meeting in December 2014 to develop the more powerful Vega-C to address long-term institutional and evolving market needs. ESA Member States participating in the Vega-C program are Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, France, Germany, Ireland, Italy, Netherlands, Norway, Romania, Spain, Sweden and Switzerland.