With the flagship-class ExoMars program nearing the finish line after a decade in development, European Space Agency officials want to complete negotiations with the mission’s industrial teams before committing to a 2018 launch date for a European-built Mars rover.
A new satellite to monitor crops, pollution and the growth of cities blasted off Monday from a tropical spaceport in French Guiana, adding another piece to Europe’s multibillion-dollar fleet of spacecraft tasked to track Earth’s ever-changing environment.
The first in a planned multi-decade series of European land imaging satellites is fastened on top of a solid-fueled Vega launcher at a French Guiana space base for liftoff Monday, kicking off a mission to track everything from global crop growth to urban sprawl.
Airbus Defense and Space and OneWeb, a startup backed by Richard Branson’s Virgin Group and wireless tech giant Qualcomm, announced Monday plans to set up a joint venture for the construction of 900 Internet broadcasting satellites for launches beginning in 2018.
The French government has signaled its intention to sell its stake in Arianespace, a major step in consolidating the European launcher industry under the control of a joint venture formed by Airbus and rocket engine manufacturer Safran.
Two satellites equipped to broadcast television programming to millions of homes across the United States and Latin America are braced for launch from French Guiana on Wednesday aboard an Ariane 5 rocket.
Arianespace announced four launch orders this week to deploy spacecraft in orbit for Google, the United Arab Emirates and Europe’s new laser data relay satellite network.
Boeing Satellite Systems, Airbus Defense and Space and Orbital ATK have won orders from Luxembourg-based satellite operator SES for three new communications spacecraft for launch in 2017.