List of Vega launches

Last updated

Vega rocket before liftoff with Sentinel-2A Sentinel-2 and vega.jpg
Vega rocket before liftoff with Sentinel-2A

Vega is an expendable launch system in use by Arianespace which was jointly developed by the Italian Space Agency (ASI) and the European Space Agency (ESA). Development began in 1998 and the first launch took place from the Guiana Space Centre on 13 February 2012. [1]

Contents

It is designed to launch small payloads — 300 to 2,500 kilograms (660 to 5,510 lb) satellites for scientific and Earth observation missions to polar and low Earth orbits. [2] The reference Vega mission is a polar orbit bringing a spacecraft of 1,500 kilograms (3,300 lb) to an altitude of 700 kilometres (430 mi).

The rocket, named after the star Vega, [3] is a single-body launcher (no strap-on boosters) with three solid rocket stages: the P80 first stage, the Zefiro 23 second stage, and the Zefiro 9 third stage. The upper module is a liquid rocket called AVUM. The improved version of the P80 stage, the P120C, is also used as the side boosters of the Ariane 6. Italy is the leading contributor to the Vega program (65%), followed by France (13%). [4] Other participants include Spain, Belgium, the Netherlands, Switzerland and Sweden. [5]

Launch statistics

Rocket configurations

5
10
15
20
'12
'13
'14
'15
'16
'17
'18
'19
'20
'21
'22
'23
'24
'25
  •   Vega
  •   Vega C
  •   Vega C (scheduled)

Launch outcomes

5
10
15
20
'12
'13
'14
'15
'16
'17
'18
'19
'20
'21
'22
'23
'24
'25
  •   Failure
  •   Success
  •   Scheduled

Orbits

1
2
3
'12
'13
'14
'15
'16
'17
'18
'19
'20
'21
'22
'23
'24
'25

Past launches

Note: Date and time of start (as count-down zero, ignition or lift-off?) is listed in UTC. (Although local time at Guiana Space Centre (CSG) in Kourou, French Guiana, South America is UTC−3.)

2013–2019

2020–present

Future launches

See also

Notes

    References

    1. ↑ "Vega". ESA. 3 February 2012. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
    2. ↑ Amos, Jonathan (13 February 2012). "Vega launcher makes first flight". BBC News. Retrieved 13 February 2012.
    3. ↑ Tariq Malik (13 February 2012). "Europe Launches New Vega Rocket on Maiden Voyage". Space.com. Retrieved 29 May 2014. The Italian-built Vega rocket is named after the second-brightest star in the northern hemisphere
    4. ↑ Svitak, Amy (6 February 2012). "European Vega Small-Class Launcher Targets Government Market" . Aviation Week. Retrieved 11 March 2010.
    5. ↑ Clark, Steven (14 February 2012). "Vega launcher program courts German participation". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 14 February 2012.
    6. 1 2 Pietrobon, Steven (10 October 2018). "Ariane Launch Manifest" . Retrieved 16 October 2018.
    7. ↑ "Vega Flight VV01". Arianespace. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    8. ↑ "SECOND VEGA LAUNCH FROM THE GUIANA SPACE CENTER (Press Kit)" (PDF). arianespace.com. Arianespace. May 2013. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    9. ↑ VERTA is an acronym for Vega Research and Technology Accompaniment and designates Vega's missions aiming "to demonstrate the flexibility of the Vega launch system" VERTA framework includes four ESA missions (PROBA-V, ADM-Aeolus, LISA Pathfinder and IXV), but also some missions of National Agencies (like ASI). Source: ESA (20 November 2013) VERTA Programme ASI (2015) PRISMA Precursore IperSpettrale (Hyperspectral Precursor) of the application mission
    10. ↑ "Vega delivers three Satellites to Orbit to achieve second Success". Spaceflight101. 7 May 2013. Archived from the original on 15 January 2014. Retrieved 14 January 2014.
    11. ↑ "THIRD VEGA LAUNCH FROM THE GUIANA SPACE CENTER (Press Kit)" (PDF). Arianespace. September 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    12. ↑ Greg Delaney (22 June 2012). "Kazakhstan to launch sastellite on new Arianespace Vega vehicle". kazakhstanlive.com. Archived from the original on 16 January 2014. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
    13. ↑ "February 2015 | VV04 | IXV (Press Kit)" (PDF). arianespace.com. Arianespace. September 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    14. ↑ Bergin, Chris (3 July 2014). "ESA's experimental space plane gearing up for November debut". NASASpaceflight. Retrieved 3 July 2014.
    15. ↑ "The Spaceport keeps pace with Arianespace's busy mission cadence". Arianespace. 17 October 2014. Retrieved 20 October 2014.
    16. ↑ "ESA launch schedule" . Retrieved 28 November 2014.
    17. ↑ "Vega to fly ESA experimental reentry vehicle". ESA. 29 March 2013. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
    18. ↑ "IXV – Intermediate Experimental Vehicle". spaceflight101. Retrieved 27 February 2015.
    19. ↑ "June 2015 | VV05 | Sentinel-2A (Press Kit)" (PDF). arianespace.com. Arianespace. September 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    20. ↑ "Sentinel-2" Archived 30 March 2015 at the Wayback Machine ESA Retrieved 30 April 2014
    21. ↑ "Soyuz orbits Sentinel-1A on 7th successful launch from French Guiana". CNES. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
    22. ↑ "Vega milestones". Arianespace. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
    23. ↑ "ESA books Eurockot Launch for Sentinel-5p Satellite". Eurockot Launch Services. Retrieved 30 April 2014.
    24. ↑ "December 2015 | VV06 | LISA Pathfinder (Press Kit)" (PDF). arianespace.com. Arianespace. November 2015. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    25. ↑ "LISA Pathfinder overview". ESA. 10 January 2013. Retrieved 7 May 2013.
    26. ↑ "LISA Pathfinder enroute to gravitational wave demonstration". ESA. Retrieved 3 December 2015.
    27. ↑ Arianespace (September 2016). "Launch Kt | September 2016 | VV07 | PerúSAT-1 SkySats-4 to 7" (PDF). arianespace.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    28. ↑ de Selding, Peter B. (25 March 2015). "Vega To Launch Peruvian Imaging Satellite Along with Skybox Craft". SpaceNews. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
    29. ↑ "Vega To Launch Skybox Satellites". SpaceNews. 17 March 2015. Retrieved 18 March 2015.
    30. ↑ Arianespace (November 2016). "Launch Kit | December 2016 | VV08 | GÖKTÜRK-1" (PDF). arianespace.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    31. ↑ "Arianespace's Vega scores its eighth success in orbiting GÖKTÜRK-1 for Turkey". Arinespace. Retrieved 5 December 2016.
    32. ↑ Arianespace (February 2017). "Launch Kit | March 2017 | VV09 | Sentinel-2B" (PDF). arianespace.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    33. ↑ "Project main steps". cnes.fr. CNES. Archived from the original on 19 October 2015. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
    34. ↑ "Arianespace to launch OPTSAT 3000 and VENμS satellites". Arianespace. 19 February 2014. Retrieved 24 February 2014.
    35. ↑ Arianespace (July 2017). "Launch Kit | August 2017 | VV10 | OPTSAT-3000 Venμs" (PDF). arianespace.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    36. ↑ Clark, Stephen (2 August 2017). "Vega launcher achieves on-target deployment of Earth-imaging satellites". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 11 March 2019.
    37. ↑ Arianespace (October 2017). "Launch Kit | November 2017 | V11 | MOHAMMED VI – A satellite" (PDF). arianespace.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    38. ↑ "Vega VV11 • MN35-A". Spaceflight101. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
    39. ↑ ESA Operations [@esaoperations] (22 August 2018). "Exact #Vega liftoff time of flight #VV12 with #Aeolus is confirmed as 21:20:09.478Z" (Tweet). Retrieved 23 August 2018– via Twitter.
    40. ↑ "Launch Schedule". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 11 August 2018.
    41. ↑ "Wind laser survives extremes" ESA Retrieved 29 April 2014
    42. ↑ de Selding, Peter B. (22 May 2015). "Cost, Schedule Woes on 2 Lidar Missions Push ESA To Change Contract Procedures". SpaceNews. Retrieved 3 October 2015.
    43. ↑ Arianespace (August 2018). "Launch Kit | August 2018 | VV12 | AEOLUS" (PDF). arianespace.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    44. 1 2 "Arianespace orbits the MOHAMMED VI–B satellite on 13th successful Vega launch in a row" (Press release). Arianespace. 21 November 2018. Retrieved 21 November 2018.
    45. ↑ Arianespace (November 2018). "Launch Kit | November 2018 | VV13 | MOHAMMED VI – B satellite" (PDF). arianespace.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    46. ↑ Arianespace [@Arianespace] (21 March 2019). "Arianespace's first Vega flight in 2019 – and third overall this year – lifts off today from the Spaceport in French Guiana" (Tweet). Retrieved 21 March 2019– via Twitter.
    47. ↑ ASI. "PRISMA Launch Date" . Retrieved 16 October 2018.
    48. ↑ Arianespace (March 2019). "LAUNCH KIT March 2019 VV14 PRISMA" (PDF). arianespace.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    49. ↑ Bergin, Chris (10 July 2019). "Vega suffers her first failure during Falcon Eye-1 launch". nasaspaceflight.com. Retrieved 20 March 2020.
    50. ↑ "Arianespace Flight VV15: Mission failure".
    51. ↑ "Vega flight VV15: findings of the Independent Inquiry Commission's investigations". European Space Agency. 5 September 2019. Retrieved 14 September 2019.
    52. ↑ Henry, Caleb (13 January 2020). "UAE's Falcon Eye 2 satellite switched from Vega to Soyuz". SpaceNews. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
    53. ↑ Foust, Jeff (1 December 2020). "Soyuz launches Falcon Eye 2 satellite for UAE". SpaceNews. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
    54. ↑ Cohn, Carolyn; Sims, Tom; Hussain, Noor (31 July 2019). "Space insurance costs to rocket after satellite crash". Reuters. Retrieved 9 October 2022.
    55. ↑ "Launch Schedule". Spaceflight Now. 2 September 2020. Retrieved 3 September 2020.
    56. ↑ "Vega flight opportunity for multiple small satellites". ESA. 22 February 2017. Retrieved 22 February 2017.
    57. ↑ "Launch Schedule". Spaceflight Now. 14 November 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
    58. ↑ Krebs, Gunter. "Ingenio". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 3 August 2017.
    59. ↑ "Taranis". CNES. 29 June 2018. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
    60. 1 2 "Arianespace traces cause of Vega launch failure to "human error"". Spaceflight Now. 17 November 2020. Retrieved 18 November 2020.
    61. ↑ "18th Vega mission marks Arianespace's second successful launch in 72 hours". Arianespace. 29 April 2021. Retrieved 29 April 2021.
    62. ↑ "19th Vega mission demonstrates Arianespace's ability to deliver for the most innovative projects for the benefits of its clients". Arianespace. 17 August 2021. Retrieved 17 August 2021.
    63. ↑ "VV20: Arianespace's Vega launcher successfully orbits three CERES satellites". Arianespace (Press release). 16 November 2021. Retrieved 16 November 2021.
    64. ↑ "Building on its 2016 successes, Arianespace looks to the future with confidence at the service of its customers" (Press release). Arianespace. 4 January 2017. Retrieved 8 January 2017.
    65. ↑ Atkinson, Ian (13 July 2022). "ESA launches upgraded Vega-C rocket on first mission". NASASpaceFlight . Retrieved 13 July 2022.
    66. ↑ Clark, Stephen (21 December 2022). "Two Pléiades Neo Earth-imaging satellites lost in failure of Europe's Vega C rocket". Spaceflight Now. Retrieved 21 December 2022.
    67. ↑ Krebs, Gunter. "Pléiades-Neo 1, 2, 3, 4 (VHR-2020 1, 2, 3, 4)". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
    68. ↑ Foust, Jeff (3 March 2023). "Nozzle erosion blamed for Vega C launch failure". SpaceNews. Retrieved 7 March 2023.
    69. ↑ "Flight VV23: success to the benefit of Thaland, Taiwan and cubesats". Arianespace (Press release). 9 October 2023. Retrieved 10 October 2023.
    70. ↑ Parsonson, Andrew (16 October 2023). "Two Vega VV23 Payloads Failed to Deploy". European Spaceflight. Retrieved 16 October 2023.
    71. ↑ "Arianespace to launch Europe's Copernicus Earth Observation Program Sentinel-2C satellite on September 3". Arianespace . 31 July 2024. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
    72. ↑ Parsonson, Andrew (4 December 2023). "The Case of the Missing Vega AVUM Propellant Tanks". European Spaceflight. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
    73. ↑ Clark, Stephen (5 September 2024). "The Vega rocket never found its commercial niche. After tonight, it's gone". Ars Technica. Retrieved 5 September 2024.
    74. 1 2 Foust, Jeff (3 March 2023). "Nozzle erosion blamed for Vega C launch failure". SpaceNews . Retrieved 4 March 2023.
    75. ↑ "CO3D". CNES (in French). 16 October 2023. Retrieved 4 November 2023.
    76. ↑ "MicroCarb". CNES. 19 April 2023. Retrieved 14 May 2023.
    77. ↑ "Smiles all round: Vega-C to launch ESA solar wind mission". ESA . 30 April 2024. Retrieved 27 June 2024.
    78. ↑ "NASA's Earth System Science Pathfinder Program" (PDF). NASA. 5 September 2023. Retrieved 8 September 2023.
    79. 1 2 "Arianespace awarded new Vega C launches for the IRIDE programme". Arianespace (Press release). 14 March 2023. Retrieved 14 March 2023.
    80. ↑ "Arianespace will launch Kompsat-6 with Vega C for Korea Aerospace Research Institute". Arianespace (Press release). 31 May 2023. Retrieved 1 June 2023.
    81. 1 2 3 4 5 6 7 8 9 10 11 12 13 14 "All flights opportunities". Arianespace . Retrieved 17 August 2023.
    82. 1 2 3 4 5 6 "Planned launches". EUMETSAT . 4 July 2024. Retrieved 29 July 2024.
    83. 1 2 3 "Arianespace supporting the European Union's Copernicus programme with Vega C". Arianespace (Press release). 29 November 2022. Retrieved 30 November 2022.
    84. 1 2 Krebs, Gunter (7 July 2020). "Sentinel 3A, 3B, 3C, 3D". Gunter's Space Page. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
    85. ↑ "Arianespace to launch PLATiNO 1 & 2 on Vega and Vega C". Arianespace (Press release). 6 January 2022. Retrieved 11 March 2023.
    86. ↑ "Satellite: CSG-3". WMO. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
    87. ↑ "Agenzia Spaziale Italiana Annual Report 2020" (PDF). ASI . 30 August 2021. p. 31. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
    88. ↑ "Piano Triennale delle Attività 2021-2023" [Three-year Plan of Activities 2021-2023](PDF). ASI (in Italian). 10 March 2021. p. 50. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
    89. ↑ "Dal 2022 in orbita il satellite dalla super-vista" [Hyperspectral satellite to orbit in 2022]. ANSA (in Italian). 3 July 2019. Retrieved 6 December 2021.
    90. ↑ "Vega-C - KOMPSAT-7". Next Spaceflight. Retrieved 27 March 2024.
    91. ↑ "Arianespace to launch KOMPSAT-7 for the Korea Aerospace Research Institute (KARI) using a Vega-C launch vehicle". Arianespace. 12 September 2018. Retrieved 16 October 2018.
    92. ↑ "CEOS EO HANDBOOK – MISSION SUMMARY - KOMPSAT-7". The CEOS Database. Retrieved 5 December 2022.
    93. ↑ "ALTIUS - ESA's ozone mission". ESA. Retrieved 4 May 2024.
    94. ↑ Rainbow, Jason (19 January 2023). "ClearSpace raises $29 million ahead of first debris removal mission". SpaceNews . Retrieved 23 January 2023.
    95. ↑ "Satellite: CSG-4". WMO. Retrieved 25 January 2024.
    96. ↑ "Launches | Upcoming launches". SES . Retrieved 6 August 2024.
    97. ↑ "SES Selects Arianespace to Launch EAGLE-1 Satellite for Europe's Quantum Cryptography". Arianespace (Press release). 9 November 2022. Retrieved 9 November 2022.
    98. ↑ Parsonson, Andrew (25 January 2025). "ESA Member States to Vote on Future of Space Rider in November". European Spaceflight. Retrieved 1 March 2025.
    99. ↑ Messier, Doug (12 April 2018). "Announcement of Opportunity to Fly Payloads on ESA's Space Rider". Parabolic Arc. Retrieved 23 August 2018.
    100. ↑ "Contract secures design for ESA's FORUM satellite". ESA . 28 June 2022. Retrieved 28 June 2022.
    101. ↑ Status of the Current and Future ESA Earth Observation Missions and Programmes. CGMS-49. ESA . 14 May 2021. pp. 33–37. Retrieved 27 August 2021– via the Internet Archive.
    102. ↑ "Earth Explorer 9 Candidate Mission FORUM – Report for Mission Selection" (PDF). ESA. 21 June 2019. Retrieved 30 April 2021.
    103. ↑ Parsonson, Andrew (23 September 2020). "Airbus signs $350 million contract to build CRISTAL ice-monitoring satellite for EU". SpaceNews . Retrieved 28 November 2022.
    104. ↑ Henry, Caleb (10 February 2016). "ESA Awards Sentinel 3C and D Satellite Contracts to Thales Alenia Space". Via Satellite. Retrieved 28 May 2021.
    105. 1 2 3 Parsonson, Andrew (13 November 2020). "ESA signs a trio of Copernicus contracts worth 1.3 billion euros". SpaceNews . Retrieved 28 November 2022.
    106. ↑ "TRUTHS". ESA. Retrieved 16 June 2023.
    This page is based on this Wikipedia article
    Text is available under the CC BY-SA 4.0 license; additional terms may apply.
    Images, videos and audio are available under their respective licenses.