The rocket ARIANE 5-ESCA explodes and falls into the Atlantic

2002/12/12 Orobengoa, Olatz - Elhuyar Zientziaren Komunikazioa

• Astronautika

It was the second attempt to take off this spacecraft. The first time, on November 28, the count was paralyzed due to a series of errors detected on control computers.

The rocket carried two commercial satellites: the Hotbird TM7 of the European telecommunications company Eutelsat and the experimental telecommunications satellite of the French space research center CNEs. The value of both satellites was 630 million euros.

The explosion has delayed all Ariane 5 rocket launches scheduled for next year. Among them, the most important is the launch scheduled for January 12. The rocket had to carry the Rosetta probe to investigate the Wirtan comet. It was to land on the comet and study its surface structure, as well as the changes that occur because of the sun.

Before arriving at Kometa, it was necessary to make two laps around the Earth and another around Mars. In this way it would get the proper position to reach the kite. However, in order to reach this comet, the launch must be carried out in a few specific days, in January, in a period of twenty days. If all shots are delayed, however, the probe must be sent to another comet.

About to lose the market of commercial satellites

In addition to the delay of next year's projects, the explosion brings new bad news for the European company Arianespace. Since the expansion of the commercial satellite market in the 1990s, Arianespac has managed to conquer most of the market. U.S. companies Lockheed Martin and Boeing, who follow him, have only had military projects.

But it seems that the last problems of Airanespac have opened the doors to Americans. These two companies have built and carried out successful tests very similar to those of the exploded rocket. Therefore, it is possible that some of the clients that Arianespac had come to these other companies.