The European Space Agency\u2019s (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\u2019s magnetosphere and its response to powerful solar wind.<\/p>\n
Vega C successfully launched on a northward trajectory to a highly inclined 73-degree orbit from the Ensemble de Lancement Vega (ELV) at the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana, at 03:52 UTC on Tuesday, May 19. Vega C\u2019s manufacturer, Avio, delayed the launch from April 9 due to a technical problem on the component production line after integrating the VV29 vehicle with its payload.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
This was Vega C\u2019s first launch with Avio as the provider, replacing Arianespace, which previously operated the vehicle. Airbus in Madrid developed the payload module, while CAS delivered the spacecraft\u2019s power, attitude control, and propulsion module.<\/p>\n
The rocket\u2019s first stage, a single P120C solid-fuel motor, has a maximum thrust of 4,323 kN. The single-piece solid-fuel rocket motor is the largest and most powerful ever developed, a title previously held by the P80FW motor used on the original Vega vehicle. Arianespace\u2019s Ariane 6 vehicle also uses the P120C as strap-on boosters in either a two-booster or four-booster configuration.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n