Rocket Report: Eutelsat’s surprising decision; Europe complains about SpaceX again

By: ARS Techica - Science Posted On: September 20, 2024 View: 4

This article was originally published on ARS Techica - Science. You can read the original article HERE

Enlarge / Europe's first Ariane 6 rocket lifts off from a new launch pad in Kourou, French Guiana.
Jody Amiet/AFP via Getty Images

Welcome to Edition 7.12 of the Rocket Report! For once, a week with not all that much launch news. Among the highlights were Eutelsat's surprise announcement of a deal with Mitsubishi Heavy Industries, SpaceX's ongoing war with the FAA, and Europe identifying a straightforward solution to the upper stage problem on Ariane 6's debut launch earlier this summer.

As always, we welcome reader submissions, and if you don't want to miss an issue, please subscribe using the box below (the form will not appear on AMP-enabled versions of the site). Each report will include information on small-, medium-, and heavy-lift rockets as well as a quick look ahead at the next three launches on the calendar.

Small launch vehicles still talking a big game. Despite stiff competition from SpaceX rideshare services and some high-profile failures, ventures are still pursuing small launch vehicles that they argue can fill niches in the market, Space News reports. Launch providers speaking at World Space Business Week said they can deliver satellites when and where customers want rather than waiting for the next available rideshare launch from SpaceX.

Same old story ... For example: "We offer flexibility," said Miguel Belló Mora, executive chairman of Orbex, a small launch vehicle developer based in the United Kingdom. "We can’t compete on price per kilo." We wish these small launch companies well, but this is the same kind of talk that has been around for years. The reality is that the small launch business has small margins, and is extremely demanding. It also doesn't engender confidence that most of these companies are still not close to having an operational rocket. (submitted by Ken the Bin)

Iran launches Qaem-100 rocket again. After an initial failure in 2023, Iran has now successfully launched the small, solid rocket Qaem-100 for a second time, Al Mayadeen reports. Iran successfully launched the domestically produced Chamran 1 satellite into a 550-km orbit on Saturday, according to state media.

Purpose of launches is questioned ... Iranian officials said the primary mission of Chamran 1 is to test hardware and software systems, specifically to demonstrate orbital maneuvering capabilities in terms of altitude and phase. Western governments, including the United States, have consistently cautioned Iran against conducting such launches, claiming the technology used could be repurposed for ballistic missiles. (submitted by MarkW98 and Ken the Bin)

French firm acquires Australian launch site. French rocket builder Sirius Space Services has signed an agreement with Equatorial Launch Australia to secure a launch facility at the company’s Arnhem Space Centre in Australia, European Spaceflight reports. The company will reside at Arnhem Space Centre’s Launch Complex Number 3, which the company has renamed “Le Mans.” Sirius said the flexibility to access a wide range of orbital inclinations was a crucial factor in its decision to select a location halfway around the globe.

Going up from down under ... Sirius Space was founded in 2020 and is developing a range of three rockets that will be capable of delivering payloads of between 175 and 1,100 kilograms to low Earth orbit. Construction of the Le Mans launch complex will begin in October 2024, with the company aiming to have the facility operational by the second half of 2025. The first launch of Sirius 1 on a ballistic flight will be conducted from the facility in 2026. The company’s larger Sirius 13 and Sirius 15 rockets will then both be debuted from the facility in 2027. Sirius also plans to launch from the Guiana Space Centre. (submitted by Ken the Bin)

Eutelsat turns to Japan for launch needs. In a somewhat surprising announcement this week, Eutelsat said Wednesday it had signed a contract with Japan’s Mitsubishi Heavy Industries for multiple H3 rocket launches starting 2027, Space News reports. Eutelsat spokesperson Katie Dowd said the agreement is focused on launches for the company’s upcoming satellites in geostationary orbit, but declined to provide more information. The operator already has launches mostly covered for deploying its next-generation OneWeb broadband satellites in low-Earth orbit, CEO Eva Berneke recently told the publication.

Eutelsat could be hedging its bets ... A large French satellite operator, Eutelsat merged with OneWeb in 2023. Notably, the previously announced launch contracts for OneWeb include 3D-printing company Relativity Space’s Terran R vehicle and Europe’s next-generation launcher Ariane 6, which have both experienced development delays. There is also some question as to whether the Ariane 6 rocket will have capacity given its existing manifest, including Project Kuiper launches for Amazon. Regardless, it's a big win for Mitsubishi, which has struggled to find commercial success with the new H3 booster. (submitted by Ken the Bin)

European officials complain about SpaceX some more. Arianespace CEO Stéphane Israël recently gave an interview to the French publication Les Echos, which has been shared by European Spaceflight. It sounds like the once-dominant commercial satellite launch firm, which has been run over by the SpaceX steamroller, is tired of being asked about the SpaceX steamroller. Israël said Europeans should "stop just comparing SpaceX and Elon Musk with Arianespace."

Why? ... His reasoning for this was that SpaceX is not just a launch company but one that controls a broader value chain that includes satellite manufacturing and operation through Starlink. “He competes against the entire space industry on his own,” said Israël. In order to compete with SpaceX, he explained “the entire European space sector must be united and ambitious.” Israël identified Europe’s planned Iris² satellite constellation as a key project to ensure future competitiveness. “Our hopes rest on the Iris² constellation promoted by the European Commission,” he said. The future of this project, however, appears to be uncertain, especially after the sudden departure of Thierry Breton from the European Commission this week. (submitted by EllPeaTea)

After fine, Musk escalates feud with the FAA. The Federal Aviation Administration alleged Tuesday that SpaceX violated its launch license requirements on two occasions last year by using an unauthorized launch control center and fuel farm at NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, Ars reports. The regulator seeks to fine SpaceX $633,009 for the alleged violations, which occurred during a Falcon 9 launch and a Falcon Heavy launch last year. Combined, the proposed fines make up the largest civil penalty ever imposed by the FAA's commercial spaceflight division.

Probably only the beginning of a battle ... Hours later, Elon Musk, SpaceX's founder and CEO, vowed to sue the FAA, calling the proposed penalties an example of "lawfare" against his company. "SpaceX will be filing suit against the FAA for regulatory overreach," Musk posted on X, his social media platform. The FAA rarely imposes fines on commercial space companies. The agency oversees the licensing of commercial launch and reentry operations by US companies and is responsible for ensuring spaceflight activities do not endanger the uninvolved public or go against US national security and foreign policy interests.

Upgraded Long March 8 rocket nears its debut. China completed a launch site rehearsal for a new, improved version of its medium-lift Long March 8 rocket this month, Space.com reports. Teams at the new Hainan commercial space launch site conducted tests with the first Long March 8A rocket including integration with the launch pad and fueling. The new launcher is now set to fly for the first time around December.

More room for more satellites ... The liquid-fueled, two-stage rocket boasts an increased payload capacity and enhanced mission adaptability and will provide crucial support for large-scale satellite constellation deployment. The new Long March 8A achieves this greater lifting power, about 7.7 metric tons to Sun-synchronous orbit, with upgraded second stage liquid hydrogen-liquid oxygen engines. The new variant also features a payload fairing measuring 17 feet (5.2 meters) in diameter, allowing it to carry more volume and thus more satellites into orbit. (submitted by Ken the Bin)

Ariane 6 issue diagnosed as software problem. A little more than two months ago, Europe's new Ariane 6 rocket made a largely successful debut. However, a malfunction on the upper stage prevented the Vinci engine from completing a third burn to steer back into Earth's atmosphere for a targeted, destructive reentry. Now, after an analysis of the entire mission profile, the European Space Agency has concluded there are no "showstoppers" that will delay a second flight of the vehicle. A second flight could occur before the end of this year.

According to the space agency ... "The investigations included analyzing why re-ignition of the upper stage Auxiliary Propulsion Unit (APU) did not occur as planned at the beginning of the long coasting phase of Ariane 6’s inaugural mission. Analysis shows that one temperature measurement exceeded a pre-defined limit and that the flight software correctly triggered a shutdown, entering the long coasting phase without the APU thrust and so degrading the proceeding of the demo phase. As a consequence, the third ignition sequence of the Vinci engine was not ordered by the flight software." (submitted by Ken the Bin)

Spanish startup wins large engine contract. The European Space Agency has awarded Spain’s Pangea Aerospace a contract to design a powerful rocket engine, European Spaceflight reports. ESA published a call for its Very High Thrust rocket engine initiative in late 2023 under its Future Launchers Preparatory Program, and the high-thrust engine could be used to power future European heavy and super-heavy rockets. The engine proposed by Pangea is called Kronos, and its initial specifications call for a reusable full-flow staged-combustion rocket engine. (submitted by EllPeaTea)

Taking a very big step up ... Pangea will be the prime contractor responsible for the core propulsion technology, while Safran and Sabca will provide propulsion subsystems. The goal is to design an engine capable of producing 2 MN of thrust, which is significantly more powerful than any engine designed and built by Pangea to date. The new engine would be in a similar class to that of the US Space Shuttle or SpaceX's Raptor engine. (submitted by Leika, EllPeaTea, and Ken the Bin)

Next three launches

Sept. 20: Kuaizhou 1A | Unknown payload | Xichang Satellite Launch Center, China | 09:45 UTC

Sept. 20: Falcon 9 | Starlink 9-17 | Vandenberg Space Force Base, Calif. | 13:50 UTC

Sept. 26: Falcon 9 | Crew-9 mission | Cape Canaveral Space Force Base, Fla. | 18:05 UTC

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