Ariane 6

Ariane 6 is a European expendable launch system. The first launch was in 2024. It has been in development since the early 2010s by ArianeGroup. They were creating it for the European Space Agency (ESA). The system was built to replace the Ariane 5. The stated reason for Ariane 6 was that it would cost half as Ariane 5. The new system would also increase the maximum number of launches each year from six or seven to up to eleven.

Ariane 6 is designed with two core stages. They are both powered by liquid hydrogen-liquid oxygen (hydrolox) engines. The first stage has a version of the Vulcain engine that is used on the Ariane 5. The second stage has a new design of the Vinci engine. Most of the lift-off thrust comes from solid rocket boosters attached to the first stage. There are two P120s on the Ariane 62 and four on the Ariane 64 variants. These are larger versions of the P80s used on the Vega rocket.

 Description 
Two versions of Ariane 6 are being created:
 Ariane 62 has two P120 solid boosters. It weighs about  at liftoff. This version is intended for government and scientific missions. It can launch up to  into Geosynchronous transfer orbit (GTO) and  into LEO.
 Ariane 64 has four P120 boosters. It will have a liftoff weight of about . This version is intended for commercial satellite launches. It can launch up to  into GTO and  into LEO. Like Ariane 5, it will be able to launch two geosynchronous satellites together.
References

Category:Spacecraft