July 4, 2024 | German know-how plays a key role in the European launcher programme
Ariane 6 ready for inaugural flight
Inaugural launch of Europe's new Ariane 6 launcher on 9 July 2024
The new European Ariane 6 launcher successfully lifts off from the launch pad on 9 July 2024 at 21:00 CEST (16:00 local time Kourou). The mobile gantry – a giant mobile garage on rails that is approximately 100 metres tall and weighs 8000 tonnes – can be seen in the background. With its gigantic dimensions, the mobile gantry is one of the largest and heaviest mobile structures in the world. It surrounded the rocket during its final integration.
The new European Ariane 6 launcher on its first flight on 9 July 2024
The new European Ariane 6 launcher successfully completed its first launch on 9 July 2024 at 21:00 CEST (16:00 local time Kourou). The image shows the rocket a few seconds after lift-off, shortly before the two boosters were separated.
Ariane 6's upper stage was successfully tested at DLR's P5.2 test stand in Lampoldshausen
Tests on the Ariane 6 upper stage are among the major milestones in this launcher's development. In Lampoldshausen, teams from DLR, ArianeGroup and the European Space Agency (ESA) were able to refuel the new upper stage and cool it down for the first time, testing its Vinci engine in a 'hot fire' test lasting 45 seconds.
The first launch of the new European launcher, Ariane 6, is scheduled for 9 July 2024.
Germany is the second largest contributor to the Ariane 6 programme after France, and German ESA contributions are coordinated by the German Space Agency at DLR.
DLR is significantly involved in the development of Ariane 6 through upper stage tests at the DLR Institute of Space Propulsion in Lampoldshausen.
The new European launcher, Ariane 6, is scheduled to take off for the first time on 9 July 2024. It is intended to ensure Europe's independent access to space, just as efficiently as its predecessor, Ariane 5, except at a lower cost and with greater flexibility for the next decade and beyond. Germany is the second largest contributor to the European Space Agency's (ESA) Ariane 6 programme after France. German ESA contributions are coordinated by the German Space Agency at the German Aerospace Center (Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt; DLR) in Bonn. DLR is also significantly involved in the development of Ariane 6 through various engine tests and, in particular, the tests of the newly developed upper stage at the DLR Institute of Space Propulsion in Lampoldshausen.
This new rocket will be particularly used to launch institutional space missions – especially from ESA, the European Union, national space agencies and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (EUMETSAT). Currently, 30 flights have been ordered on Ariane 6 – including ESA's PLATO mission, which will be launched in 2026 to search for Earth-like extrasolar planets in the Milky Way. DLR developed several camera sensors for this space telescope, which is being built by the German space industry. Ariane 6 will also launch the Kuiper mega-constellation from US-company Amazon. However, 17 smaller payloads will initially be on board for the first flight. A re-entry demonstration capsule, a CubeSat deployer and three small satellites all come from Germany.
"Independent European access to space is essential for our daily lives as well as for business and science. The acute launcher crisis in Europe has made us all the more aware of this. We now keep our fingers crossed for the first launch next week and thank the entire Ariane 6 team and everyone involved for their incredible efforts over the last few years. The launch of a new rocket is always a fascination, illustrating what humankind can achieve with excellent research and technology, and is thus an important inspiration for European hubs of innovation," emphasises Anna Christmann, Federal Government Coordinator of German Aerospace Policy and Member of the Bundestag.
"German research and industry play a key role in the overall development of the new Ariane 6 European launcher. The strengths of the German sites lie in liquid propulsion, upper stage technology, tanks and rocket structures. This includes the Lampoldshausen research and industrial site – Europe's most modern test and production facility for these liquid propulsion systems. It will play a key role in Ariane 6 over the long term. Many important parts of the Ariane 6 launch site in Kourou were also manufactured by German companies. Ariane 6 is therefore proof that German technology and expertise are indispensable in the launcher sector," emphasises Walther Pelzer, DLR Executive Board Member and Director General of the German Space Agency at DLR.
Bremen upper stage put through its paces at DLR's site in Lampoldshausen
Germany's role in Ariane 6?
Around 21 percent of Ariane 6 was manufactured in Germany, including upper stages, tanks and engines. Without German technology, there would be no European access to space. Three German cities are involved in building the new European rocket: Bremen, Augsburg and Ottobrunn.
Since the arrival of the first Ariane 6 upper stage on 14 February 2021 at the DLR site in Lampoldshausen – the most flexible and powerful test centre for rocket engines in Europe – it has undergone several extensive tests on the new P5.2 test stand. DLR developed and built this test stand especially for these tests in order to trial the entire stage. Designed and built by ArianeGroup in Bremen as the main contractor for ESA, it is an entirely new development for Ariane 6, so it had to be really put through its paces before the first flight.
The new upper stage is 5.4 metres in diameter, approximately ten metres long, weighs about seven tonnes without fuel and 38 tonnes when fuelled. It consists of two main tanks filled with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen, which have to be cooled to extremely low temperatures of minus 183 and minus 253 degrees Celsius respectively.
No Ariane 6 without the upper stage
The upper stage of Ariane 6 and the ASTRIS stage both come from Bremen. The upper stage uses multiple engine ignitions to precisely bring numerous satellites to their various orbits. ASTRIS is a so-called 'kick stage' and in the future will use multiple engine firings and complex flight manoeuvres to launch satellites deep into space.
In addition, the Vinci engine can be re-ignited up to four times, and the APU (Auxiliary Power Unit) – both with core components from ArianeGroup in Ottobrunn. The APU significantly expands Ariane 6's range of applications. Together, the Vinci engine and APU mean the new rocket can launch a greater variety of missions. In addition, the upper stage is designed so that it burns up in Earth's atmosphere after use, leaving no space debris behind. This is an important measure to prevent the further proliferation of space debris. With several ignitions of the Vinci engine possible as well as repeated ignitions of the APU, there were very complex requirements and launch profiles simulated on the test stand during hot fire tests in Lampoldshausen. In one of the tests, for example, it was possible to simulate a scenario that mirrors the requirements of the first Ariane 6 flight. Throughout the tests, important information and data about the stage were collected, which are essential for a successful first launch and the establishment this a new, reliable launcher.
Innovative manufacturing in Germany
Safely into space: Ariane 6 tanks and structures
The tanks of the upper stage, parts of the main stage tank and the outer panelling of Ariane 6 were manufactured in Augsburg. Its tanks contain enough fuel for the flight to space and were manufactured with state-of-the-art methods. The outer fairing protects the engines and tanks during launch and on the way into space.
Around 1000 ArianeGroup engineers work in the German launcher industry at DLR’s main sites in Bremen, Lampoldshausen and Ottobrunn, as well as 500 at MT Aerospace in Augsburg and Bremen. In addition, there are also more than 50 small- and medium-sized enterprises whose special expertise makes an important contribution to the Ariane 6 programme. For example, all re-ignitable upper stages of Ariane 6 are built in Bremen, the Hanseatic city, where 'Industry 4.0' technology is also used. State-of-the-art automated welding processes and standardised 3D printing are used to develop many components, particularly for the engines – further proof of cutting-edge technology from Germany and the rest of Europe. For example, innovative technologies such as 3D printing ('additive layer manufacturing') are used in Ottobrunn to manufacture combustion chambers – the 'centrepiece' of every engine. The process has major advantages over cast or forged products, as parts can be manufactured in large quantities with virtually no mechanical post-processing required, even with complex structures. The elimination of various expensive production steps and the simplification of the engine structure significantly reduces the cost of each launch.
Specialists at MT Aerospace produce tanks and structures for all Ariane 6 rockets using state-of-the-art manufacturing processes. Despite their minimal weight, these structures can withstand the enormous stresses of an Ariane launch. All these innovations 'made in Germany' make the Ariane 6 significantly more economical to produce than its predecessor.
In addition, as part of ESA's ASTRIS programme, a new 'kick-stage' solution from Bremen, Ottobrunn and Lampoldshausen will make Ariane 6 even more versatile in the near future. With this additional upper stage, the launcher can efficiently place several payloads into different orbits or bring satellites directly to their target orbit. The kick stage is powered by the re-ignitable BERTA engine, the development of which was funded by the German Space Agency at DLR.
New rocket, new launch site
Europe's most powerful rocket engine for Ariane 6 includes Bavarian 'high tech'
The BERTA engine for the Ariane 6 ASTRIS stage safely propels space probes deep into space with multiple engine ignitions. The Vinci combustion chamber is the centrepiece of the engine, where combustion takes place. The Vulcain 2.1 combustion chamber provides the thrust to leave Earth, along with the boosters. All elements come from Ottobrunn.
Europe's new launcher, Ariane 6, also has a new launch site at the European Spaceport in French Guiana. A consortium of companies led by the French EIFFAGE Group was responsible for the construction of the area known as 'ELA 4'. Four German companies were also involved, with the Hanover-based steel technology company SEH taking on the 'infrastructure package'. This primarily includes the flat assembly hall BAL (Bátiment Assemblage Lanceur), where the main and upper stages of Ariane 6 are prepared and joined together horizontally to form the 'Central Core'. The approximately 100-metre-high and 8000 tonne mobile gantry – a giant mobile garage on rails – was also part of this package. With its gigantic dimensions, the mobile gantry is one of the largest and heaviest movable buildings in the world and surrounds the rocket on the launch pad during its final assembly. Shortly before launch, the huge steel structure then retracts to a safe distance. OHB Digital Connect GmbH from Mainz, a subsidiary of the Bremen-based space technology group OHB, was responsible for the 'mechanical package'. The company built the 650-tonne launch table on which the rocket is erected, the launch tower – whose important connections supply the rocket with fuel and electricity – as well as other mechanical and metal elements. RMT from Kehl am Rhein laid the power supply and installed the electrical systems, while Actemium Cegelec GmbH from Mannheim set up the gas and liquid infrastructure for refuelling Ariane 6.
