Ariane 6 (artist's concept)
- European nations announced last Tuesday they would build
a new generation rocket in a multi-billion-euro programme to maintain their
grip on the world market for satellite launches.
- European Space Agency (ESA) ministers "took a
major decision to develop a new launcher, the Ariane 6, which will replace the
Ariane 5, with a maiden flight scheduled for 2020," French Research
Minister Genevieve Fioraso said in a statement describing the deal as
"historic."
- Tuesday's agreement came after months of
behind-the-scenes haggling to ease a rift between France and Germany over
Ariane 5's successor.
- "This is a very important day for the space
agency after sometimes very tough but very fair and open discussions,"
said Luxembourg Economy and Trade Minister Etienne Schneider.
- "It's a success, I even dare to call it a big
success," said Jean-Jacques Dordain, ESA's director-general, explaining
that nations had pledged nearly 6 billion € (nearly $7.5 billion) for
operations in the coming years.
- He praised member states for making "an
exceptional effort... because we know that the economic situation is
difficult."
- Four billion euros have been earmarked for Ariane 6,
of which 400 million euros will come from industry, officials said. A review of
progress will be made in 2016.
- Over 10 years, the 20-nation alliance will spend
about eight billion euros on its launcher programme, including infrastructure
such as a new launch pad at its base in Kourou, French Guiana.
- The Ariane 5 traces its roots back nearly three
decades. A medium-to-heavy workhorse with an unbroken string of more than 60 successful
launches to its name, it accounts for more than half of the world's commercial
launch market.
- Despite its reliability, Ariane 5 comes with high
operational costs compared to nimble US commercial newcomers such as SpaceX.
- "With this historic decision, the member states
have given a strong reply to international competition in a strategic sector
for European sovereignty, industry and jobs," Fioraso said.
- "They showed that when it is united, Europe is
strong and can respond collectively to challenge."
- A replacement for the Ariane 5 had been a source of
friction for the last two years, with France and Germany - ESA's two biggest
contributors - pushing alternative approaches.
- Germany said a new rocket would take so long to
develop that rivals would have grabbed a fat share of the satellite market by
the time it was ready.
- It argued for a modified version of the existing
rocket - the Ariane 5 ME, for Midlife Evolution - which would be ready by
2017 and yield early operational savings.
- France had lobbied for switching directly to Ariane
6, whose first flight would take place in 2021 or 2022.
- It argued the ME would drain crucial resources and
lead to duplicated effort and probable holdups.
- Under a compromise, the Ariane 6 will incorporate
existing designs from the Ariane 5, ME and other projects.
- It will culminate in two versions - a two-booster or
four-booster design - able to take between five and 10 tonnes into orbit.
- It will include a solid rocket motor, the P120C,
being designed as an upgrade for ESA's Vega launcher that should be operational
from 2018, as well as a strap-on booster.
- But much of the rest will come from the Ariane 5,
thus saving development costs and time, according to engineers.
- According to Stephan Israel, head of Arianespace,
which markets ESA's services, the current market price for a single launch of
two satellites "is around $120 million."
- The public face of the wrangle was about different
approaches in engineering, driven by arguments of cost overruns and delay.
- But an undercurrent was about sharing the funding
bounty within Europe's space industry. France and Germany together account for
nearly half of ESA's financing for launchers.
- In return for climbing down on the ME, Germany
lobbied France and Italy to beef up contributions to the International Space
Station (ISS), where German firms have a big stake.
- ESA had sought a three-year, 820-million-euro budget
for the manned outpost in space.
- "We have a figure of 800 million €, it is
more or less what we have requested," said Dordain.
To do/questions:
- Translate the December 3, 2014, AFP wire story above (each pupil translates one or two paragraphs).
- List and learn new words and expressions.
- List the positive aspects of Ariane 5 (use the information in the text, your own knowledge/opinion, and information you can find on the Web).
- Why is the ESA wanting to build a new satellite launcher?
- What difficulties has the Ariane 6 programme faced?
- Why is the ESA weary of the SpaceX programme?
- Watch the video in the following link: Satellites of love
- Write a 60-second speech explaining how Europe can, from your point of view, maintain its lead in the satellite launch service industry.
