• Among the eight European states represented in the flight aggregate were four ESA payloads – the 100 kg ESAIL microsatellite and three CubeSats: SIMBA, Picasso and FSSCat which carries pioneering technology named Φ-sat-1. [16], The flight was launched from the ELV launch pad in Kourou, Centre Spatial Guyanais. Additional troubleshooting information here. It will transport more than 50 satellites at once into orbit on the first rideshare mission dedicated to light satellites. “This flight heralds a new era in rideshare opportunities for small satellites and shows our commitment to extending Europe’s access to space capabilities to serve European institutions, strengthen our space industry and grow our economy,” commented Renato Lafranconi, Vega Exploitation Programme Manager at ESA. It appears that the SSL configuration used is not compatible with Cloudflare. Performance & security by Cloudflare. The upper section is used for microsatellites, minisatellites and small satellites.

Maximising the number of satellites on each Vega launch lowers the cost per ridesharing customer. animation of the launch of Vega and the release of ESAIL. Then postponed due to Ariane 5 flight VA253 launch on 15 August 2020 at 22:04 UTC. “Our objective is to ensure maximum flexibility, with an SSMS dispenser able to be assembled very close to the launch date and to meet the requirements of any mission,” Giorgio added. This proof-of-concept flight aims to prove the technical and financial viability of the rideshare service. Proposed by Arianespace in its launch catalog offerings, the SSMS is a European project. SAB Aerospace in the Czech Republic and Bercella in Italy designed and manufactured this modular dispenser for ESA’s Vega prime contractor Avio. This first low Earth orbit rideshare commercial flight for 21 customers from 13 countries will embark 53 satellites arranged in the modular SSMS dispenser. [2], It deployed all satellites into 2 slightly different sun-synchronous orbits: the 7 heaviest satellites will be separated at an altitude of roughly 515 km (starting 40 minutes and 25 seconds until 52 minutes and 35 seconds after liftoff), before the upper stage is re-ignited to place the 46 lightest satellites at an altitude of approximately 530 km (starting 1 hour 42 minutes and 16 seconds until 1 hour 44 minutes and 56 seconds after liftoff). Liftoff from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana is set for next week. [10][11][12] VV16 activities were listed among the top priorities at the reopening of the Guiana Space Center on 11 May 2020.[13]. “This SSMS dispenser makes effective use of every available space thanks to a modular design approach. It appears that the SSL configuration used is not compatible with Cloudflare. In the future, Vega’s reignitable upper stage AVUM will allow rideshare missions to deliver payloads to three separate orbits per mission. This gives us a lot of confidence that this new service will become a vital element of the Vega launch service.”. Vega flight VV16, also called SSMS PoC Flight (for Small Spacecraft Mission Service Proof of Concept Flight), was the 16th launch of the Vega rocket. A new launch date will be set based on the evolution of the tropical storm’s situation over the Jeju station and its consequences. Typhoon Maysak is forecast to move near the South Korean island of Jeju, the site of a telemetry station needed to track the Vega rocket after it lifts off from French Guiana. For this flight, we are using a configuration called Flexi-3, weighing just 330 kg,” explained Giorgio Tumino, managing ESA’s Vega and Space Rider development programmes. Payload. Working together like this on a common goal supports Europe’s position on the global space market by establishing alliances that can reinforce existing and future programmes. Until now these customers have relied on spare capacity riding ‘piggyback’ alongside a primary satellite but spaces are limited and finding a match with mission requirements is difficult.