Live coverage: Ariane 5 rocket deploys satellites for Australia, India

Officials working on India’s Mars orbiter project are finalizing plans for a six-month science campaign after the spacecraft arrived in orbit last week, an achievement that has already satisfied the mission’s primary objectives, the head of India’s space agency said.

Five European satellites packaged inside an aerodynamic fairing have joined a Soyuz rocket its launch pad in the French Guiana jungle for a roaring ride into orbit Friday.

The Proba-3 mission is billed by the European Space Agency as “the world’s first precision formation flying machine.” Liftoff from the Satish Dhawan Space Centre in India is set for Thursday, Dec. 5, at 4:12 p.m. IST (5:42 a.m. EST, 1042 UTC).