Live coverage: Ariane 5 lifts off on its first Galileo launch

SpaceX called off a launch attempt in Texas Monday for the Super Heavy booster and Starship launch vehicle, blaming a bad valve on the first stage. The next launch attempt for the world’s largest rocket is scheduled for Thursday, depending on weather and a fix for the valve problem.

Arianespace’s first launch of 2020 lifted off at 4:05 p.m. EST (2105 GMT; 6:05 p.m. French Guiana time) Thursday from the Guiana Space Center on the northeastern shore of South America. An Ariane 5 rocket launched the Eutelsat Konnect and GSAT 30 communications satellite for Eutelsat and the Indian Space Research Organization.

SpaceX and Arianespace recently announced plans to launch rideshare missions to sun-synchronous and geostationary orbit, dedicating big rocket capacity for small satellites as the U.S.-based launch broker Spaceflight committed to using a new Indian microsatellite launcher set to debut later this year.