Tag: Vega C
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EO Satellites Beat Telecom in European Space Sales
Has Earth Observation Displaced Telecom as Europe’s Top Space Revenue Segment? Yes — and by a measurable margin. Earth observation satellite manufacturing sales surpassed telecommunications systems by 24% in 2025, according to Eurospace’s latest Facts and Figures report, presented July 7 in Milan. The shift marks the end of telecom’s historical dominance as the primary…
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ESA Delays Space Rider Drop Test After Anomaly During Helicopter Ascent
The European Space Agency (ESA) has postponed a key drop test of its Space Rider reusable spaceplane after an anomaly occurred during a helicopter-assisted ascent phase in May, delaying the final stage of the vehicle’s landing qualification campaign. ESA confirmed that the incident took place during a two-week test campaign that concluded on May 8,…
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Launch Preview: Falcon 9, Electron, and Vega C launch missions alongside Starship Flight 12
Six launches are scheduled worldwide during the next week, with the 12th flight of SpaceX’s Starship serving as the headline. Outside of Starship, SpaceX is scheduled to launch three Starlink missions on Falcon 9 from the company’s launch facilities in California and Florida. Internationally, Avio launched the joint European and Chinese SMILE mission atop a…
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Vega C launches SMILE to study Earth’s magnetosphere
The European Space Agency’s (ESA) latest science mission, Solar Wind Magnetosphere Ionosphere Link Explorer (SMILE), launched on a four-stage Vega C rocket from French Guiana on Tuesday morning. SMILE, a collaboration between ESA, the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), and multiple academic and commercial organizations, will capture the first global soft X-ray images of Earth’s…
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Brazil Selects Vega C for Amazonia-1B Launch Under SpaceLaunch Contract
Brazil’s National Institute for Space Research, INPE, has awarded a launch services contract to SpaceLaunch for the deployment of its Amazonia-1B Earth observation satellite aboard a Vega C rocket in 2027, the institute said. The announcement confirms that INPE was the “extra-European institutional customer” referenced in a September 2025 statement by Italian rocket builder Avio,…
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Taiwan Space Agency Awards Avio Launch Contract for FORMOSAT Earth Observation Satellites
Taiwan’s space agency has selected Italian launch provider Avio to deploy four Earth observation satellites under its FORMOSAT programme, strengthening international cooperation in satellite launch services and marking a key step in Taiwan’s expanding space ambitions. The Taiwan Space Agency (TASA) confirmed that Avio will be responsible for launching the FORMOSAT-8C and 8D satellites, as…
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Arianespace launches South Korean Earth observation satellite on Vega-C flight
An Arianespace Vega-C rocket lifts off from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, on Dec. 1, 2025, carrying South Korea’s KOMPSAT-7 satellite. Image: ESA-CNES-Arianespace/Optique Vidéo du CSG – S. Martin South Korea’s latest Earth observation satellite was delivered into a Sun-synchronous orbit Monday afternoon following a launch onboard a Vega-C rocket by Arianespace. The KOrea…
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Launch Roundup: Soyuz launches ISS crew; Vega C and Falcon 9 launch customer missions
This week has seen seven launches from five different rockets from across the world. SpaceX launched two missions on its workhorse Falcon 9, while a Russian Soyuz launched three new crew members towards the International Space Station from Kazakhstan. A Russian military payload launched atop an Angara 1.2 from northern Russia, and South Korea launched…
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Launch Roundup: Starlink missions fill launch manifest, Biomass and Alpha launch
JThis week’s schedule included up to six Starlink launches from Florida and California, but poor weather meant only four flew. Arianespace launched the Biomass satellite aboard a Vega C from Kourou, and Firefly Aerospace attempted to launch its first Alpha rocket of the year. SpaceX has already launched 50 times this year and celebrated its…
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ESA’s Biomass mission launches aboard Vega-C
The European Space Agency’s seventh Earth Explorer mission, Biomass, launched on Tuesday aboard an Arianespace Vega-C rocket. Biomass, which will study Earth’s forests and their impact on the planet’s climate, lifted off from Kourou, French Guiana, at 09:15 UTC (6:15 AM local time). The Earth Explorer missions are part of the Living Planet Programme (LPP),…