Tag: Airbus Defense and Space
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British-built solar probe shipping to Florida launch site before Brexit deadline
The Solar Orbiter spacecraft is ready for shipment from a test center in Ottobrunn, Germany, to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida for final launch preparations. Credit: Airbus Defense and Space The European Space Agency’s Solar Orbiter spacecraft — assembled in Britain and set for liftoff in February — has completed environmental testing in Germany…
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Egyptian satellite, ESA science probe share plane ride to launch base
These photos show the loading of Egypt’s TIBA 1 communications satellite (left) and the European Space Agency’s CHEOPS scientific satellite (right) on an Antonov An-124 cargo plane at Toulouse-Blagnac airport in France for transport to Kourou, French Guiana. Credit: Airbus Defense and Space/P. Masclet/Master Films A European-built communications satellite, manufactured in secret for the Egyptian…
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ExoMars rover leaves British factory, heads for testing in France
The completed ExoMars rover, named “Rosalind Franklin,” is lifted in preparation for shipment from an Airbus facility in Stevenage, England. Credit: Max Alexander/Airbus The European Space Agency’s ExoMars rover left its Airbus factory in Britain on Wednesday, heading for a round of testing in France before integration with its carrier and descent modules on pace…
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ExoMars parachute failures could jeopardize 2020 launch date
The ExoMars parachute deployment sequence that will deliver a surface platform and rover to the surface of Mars. The graphic is not to scale, and the colors of the parachutes are for illustrative purposes only. Credit: ESA The European Space Agency has confirmed a parachute for the ExoMars rover mission set for launch next July…
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Live coverage: Ariane 5 rocket takes off from French Guiana
Live coverage of the countdown and launch of an Ariane 5 rocket with the Intelsat 39 and EDRS C communication satellites. Text updates will appear automatically below; there is no need to reload the page. Follow us on Twitter. Arianespace’s live video webcast will begin approximately 15 minutes before launch and will be available on this page.
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Two communications satellites ride Ariane 5 rocket into geostationary transfer orbit
An Ariane 5 rocket blasts off with the Intelsat 39 and EDRS C satellites. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace – Photo Optique Video du CSG – S. Martin A U.S.-built commercial communications craft owned by Intelsat and a new node for Europe’s laser data relay satellite network rocketed into orbit Tuesday from Kourou, French Guiana, on top of…
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Second node ready to join European laser relay network
The EDRS C spacecraft undergoes testing at an Airbus Defense and Space facility. Credit: ESA – S. Corvaja A German-built satellite designed to relay data between other orbiting spacecraft and ground stations using laser beams is set for launch in tandem with an Intelsat communications craft Tuesday from Kourou, French Guiana, aboard an Ariane 5…
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First moon-bound Orion crew capsule declared complete, major tests remain
Vice President Mike Pence speaks at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center on Saturday, with the Orion spacecraft for the Artemis 1 mission in the background. Credit: NASA/Kim Shiflett Teams working at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida last week connected a U.S.-built Orion crew module with its European-made power and propulsion element for the first time,…
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Ariane 5 launch delayed in aftermath of Vega failure
The first stage for the next Ariane 5 launch is prepared for stacking on top off a mobile launch table inside the launcher integration building at the Guiana Space Center. Credit: ESA/CNES/Arianespace – Photo Optique Video du CSG – S. Martin The next flight of an Ariane 5 rocket, previously set for next week, has…
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Final assembly and test milestones on tap for NASA’s first Orion moon ship
The Orion crew module for the Artemis 1 mission, an unpiloted test flight to lunar orbit and back, completed a direct field acoustic test earlier this year inside the Armstrong Operations and Checkout Building at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida. Credit: NASA The pressurized crew module and European-built service module for NASA’s first Orion…