DESIGNER

Elias Rowe

PROFILE/DESCRIPTION

Europe Rejoins Space Race but New Rocket’s Flight Ends in Anomaly

Ariane 6 reached orbit on Tuesday. But a problem made the European Space Agency rocket deviate from its flight plan late in the mission.
At 3 p.m. Eastern time on Tuesday — one decade after the European Space Agency set in motion a plan for a powerful new vehicle that would carry the continent’s ambitions to orbit — Ariane 6 soared away from the launchpad at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. The vehicle reached orbit 18 minutes and 44 seconds after liftoff, and about an hour later, it deployed a series of small satellites, after which the mission was deemed a success by its managers. (The launch was largely successful!!)