74th Successful Launch In A Row for Ariane 5, Equaling the Record Set By Ariane 4, and Supporting the Space Ambitions of Australia and India
(Source: Arianespace; issued Oct 5, 2016)
The launch took place on October 5 at 5:30 pm (local time) from the Guiana Space Center (CSG) in Kourou, French Guiana.
Today’s flight was the eighth of the year for Arianespace and the fifth by an Ariane 5 launcher, which logged its 74th successful mission in a row, equaling the record set by the predecessor Ariane 4 from 1995 to 2003.
With today’s successful mission for Australia and India, Arianespace proudly supports two major national space programs.
Ariane 5 equals Ariane 4’s record for successful launches in a row
This launch was the 74th success in a row for Ariane 5, equaling the record set by the Ariane 4 launcher from 1995 to 2003. Ariane 5 has carried out 74 consecutive successful missions, launching 145 payloads that weigh a cumulated total of more than 623 metric tons, including:
-- 133 main payloads, weighing 618 metric tons,
-- 12 secondary payloads, weighing 5 metric tons.
During this uninterrupted string of 74 launches, Ariane 5s have orbited 24 more satellites than Ariane 4 during this equivalent series of successes, launching a combined total of 348 metric tons into orbit. This unprecedented series of successful launches in the marketplace once again proves the exceptional availability and reliability of Arianespace’s heavy-lift launcher.
Reducing the digital divide in Australia
Sky Muster II is the second satellite launched by Arianespace for the Australian operator nbn (National Broadband Network), owned by the Commonwealth of Australia. It is also the eighth satellite that Arianespace has launched for Australia, following Aussat 3, Optus C1/D1/D2/D3 and 10, and Sky Muster I, launched in September 2015.
Sky Muster II will help extend high-speed internet service to the entire country, including the Norfolk, Christmas, Macquarie and Cocos islands, in conjunction with the services currently delivered by Sky Muster I.
With Sky Muster II, the operator meets its objectives of developing the digital economy in Australia, bridging the digital divide between urban and rural areas, and enhancing connections between this vast territory and the rest of the world.
Arianespace, partner of ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation)
GSAT-18 is the 20th satellite from ISRO (Indian Space Research Organisation) to be launched by Arianespace. It will provide telecommunications services for India and bolsters ISRO’s current fleet of 14 operational telecom satellites.
GSAT-18 will contribute to ISRO’s mission of using space to help develop the Indian subcontinent through the deployment of all types of satellites (including Earth observation, telecommunications, broadcasts of educational programs, science and navigation).
Along with its own launch capacity, ISRO has entrusted Arianespace with its satellites for over 35 years, starting with the launch by Ariane 1 of the APPLE (Ariane Passenger Payload Experiment) experimental satellite in 1981. The current Arianespace order book includes two ISRO satellite launches in 2017: GSAT-11 and GSAT-17.
Shortly after the announcement of the orbital injection of the two satellites, Arianespace Chairman and Chief Executive Officer Stéphane Israël said: “With this fifth Ariane 5 launch in 2016, Arianespace proudly places its excellence at the service of two strategic space programs for Australia and India. We are especially honored to have been chosen by the Australian operator nbn to launch both of its satellites, and by ISRO, with our 20th launch for the Indian space agency today. I would also like to thank our long-standing partner SSL, which produced the Sky Muster II satellite.
“This 74th successful launch in a row by Ariane 5 equals the record set by Ariane 4. I would like to congratulate all our partners for this team success: the European Space Agency and the ESA member states participating in the Ariane program; our industrial prime contractor and lead shareholder, Airbus Safran Launchers as well as the entire European industry for Ariane; CNES/CSG along with all companies and staff at the launch base, who support us as we go from success to success. And of course, thanks to everybody at Arianespace for this eighth successful launch of 2016.”
To use space for a better life on earth, Arianespace guarantees access to space transportation services and solutions for any type of satellite, commercial as well as institutional, into any orbit. Since 1980, Arianespace has placed more than 500 satellites into orbit with its three launchers, Ariane, Soyuz and Vega, from French Guiana in South America, and from Baikonur, Kazakhstan (central Asia). Arianespace is headquartered in Evry, France near Paris, and has a facility at the Guiana Space Center in French Guiana, plus local offices in Washington, D.C., Tokyo and Singapore.
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Ariane 5 Equals the Record Set by Ariane 4, Advances the Development of Ariane 6
(Source: Airbus Safran Launchers; issued Oct 05, 2016)
• Ariane 5 thus equals the record for consecutive successful launches set by Ariane 4
• Tests conducted during this launch contribute to the development of Ariane 6, Europe’s next generation launcher
The Ariane 5 launcher completed its mission from the European space port of Kourou (French Guiana) for the 74th time in a row, thus equaling the record for consecutive successful launches set by Ariane 4, which was in service until 2003. Production of the Ariane 4 launcher was halted, after 74 consecutive successes, giving way to operation of the Ariane 5 launcher.
"With this year’s 5th launch, Ariane 5 has just equaled the record set by its predecessor Ariane 4 and will remain in service until the Ariane 6 launcher reaches full operational capability in 2023. Ariane 5 will aim to set many more reliability and performance records, pending the service entry of Ariane 6, the first flight of which is scheduled for 2020”, declared Alain Charmeau, CEO of Airbus Safran Launchers.
“I would like to congratulate the industrial teams who, within Airbus Safran Launchers and before that in the parent companies, have contributed to ensuring the level of expertise needed to maintain the quality and reliability of the Ariane 5 launcher, while implementing a process of permanent improvements since 2002. I also wish to thank Arianespace, ESA and CNES for their trust and support.”
In this 74th launch, the performance achieved by this Ariane 5 ECA was 10,663 kg (of which 9,809 kg were accounted for by the satellites).
This launch was also an opportunity to contribute to the development of Ariane 6. Once the commercial mission was completed, the third in a series of experiments was carried out to observe the movement of the residual propellants, by means of numerous sensors and a camera installed in one of the upper stage tanks. This enabled us to gain a clearer understanding of fuel behavior during the long ballistic phases necessary for the new Ariane 6 missions. The results obtained will be analyzed in cooperation with the European Space Agency (ESA) which financed this work.
Airbus Safran Launchers is lead contractor for the Ariane 5 launchers. The company coordinates an industrial network of more than 550 companies in 12 European countries (including more than 100 SMEs). Airbus Safran Launchers oversees the entire industrial chain, from management of launcher performance upgrades, to production management, to final adjustment with supply of the mission flight software. This chain includes equipment and structures, engines manufacturing, integration of the various stages and finally launcher integration in French Guiana.
Ariane 5 is the spearhead of European know-how and one of the most wide-ranging and ambitious space programs in the world. Its flexibility enables it to transport heavy payloads into low Earth orbit, two satellites into geostationary transfer orbit, a single satellite with an optimized lifetime, or several satellites into medium Earth orbit, as it will be accomplishing in its next mission in November 2016.
Airbus Safran Launchers is also industrial lead contractor for Europe’s future Ariane 6 launcher, which is scheduled for a first flight in 2020 and which will replace Ariane 5 in about 2023.
The Ariane 231 flight in figures:
-- 88th launch of an Ariane 5,
-- 58th launch of an Ariane 5 ECA,
-- 11th Ariane 5 launch with Airbus Safran Launchers as lead contractor,
-- 62nd consecutive success by a launcher fitted with a Vulcain 2 engine
-- 131st consecutive success by a launcher fitted with the HM7B engine
Airbus Safran Launchers develops and supplies innovative and competitive solutions for civil and military space launchers. As lead contractor for the European Ariane 5 and Ariane 6 launcher families, as well as for French oceanic deterrent force missiles, its expertise encompasses state-of-the art launch and propulsion system technologies. Airbus Safran Launchers is a joint venture equally owned by Airbus Defence and Space and Safran, created by the desire of the two groups to take the European space industry to the highest possible level. With estimated sales of 2.5 billion euros, it employs more than 8,000 highly qualified staff on more than 13 main sites in France and Germany.
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GSAT-18
(Source: India Space Research Organisation; issued Oct 06, 2016)
Weighing 3404 kg at lift-off, GSAT-18 carries 48 communication transponders to provide Services in Normal C-band, Upper Extended C-band and Ku-bands of the frequency spectrum. GSAT-18 carries Ku-band beacon as well to help in accurately pointing ground antennas towards the satellite.
GSAT-18 is designed to provide continuity of services on operational satellites in C-band, Extended C-band and Ku-bands. GSAT-18 was launched into a Geosynchronous Transfer Orbit (GTO) by Ariane-5 VA-231 launch vehicle.
After its injection into GTO, ISRO's Master Control Facility (MCF) at Hassan took control of GSAT-18 and performed the initial orbit raising maneuvers using the Liquid Apogee Motor (LAM) of the satellite, placing it in circular Geostationary Orbit.
The designed in-orbit operational life of GSAT-18 is about 15 years.
-- Launch Mass: 3404 kg
-- Mission Life: About 15 years
-- Power: 6474 W from Solar arrays, Two 144 Ah Li-Ion batteries
Ariane-5 VA-231
-- Type of Satellite: Communication
-- Manufacturer: ISRO
-- Owner: ISRO
-- Orbit Type: GSO
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