Flight VA260 Destination Jupiter | JUICE | Ariane 5 Launch I Arianespace

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Summary:
00:00:00 Start of the livestream
00:02:28 Mission status update with Stéphane Israël, CEO Arianespace
00:06:40 Juice readiness review with Mihaela Barbu, Juice schedule controller, ESA
00:09:30 What about Juice
00:11:53 ITW with Thomas Pesquet and Matthias Maurer, ESA astronauts
00:16:52 ITW with Joseph Aschbacher, Director General, ESA
00:18:08 Key phases of the VA260 flight
00:21:42 Operational teams at Ariane 5 launch control center
00:24:47 VA260 launch campaign
00:29:51 Ariane 5 Lift-off
00:40:49 Ariane 6 program update
00:44:49 Next Tech Juice
00:49:45 Space Team Europe
00:57:43 Juice separation
01:01:36 Mission success confirmation by Stéphane Israël, CEO Arianespace
01:20:19 Juice acquisition
01:48:36 Solar panel deployment confirmation
01:52:13 Closing remarks from Joseph Aschbacher, Director General, ESA
02:20:05 End of the program
02:38:43 Post-launch press conference

On Friday, April 14, 2023 at 09:14 am local time, an Ariane 5 launcher, operated by Arianespace, successfully lifted off from Europes Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, carrying the European Space Agency (ESA) JUICE space probe.

The spacecraft, built by Airbus Defence and Space for ESA, will carry out Europes first mission to Jupiter. It will spend at least three years making detailed observations of the planets icy moons: Europa, Ganymede, and Callisto, which will arrived in july 2031. JUICE will study the moons as potential habitats for life, addressing two key questions: what are the conditions for planet formation and the emergence of life, and how does the solar system work?

Stéphane Israël, CEO of Arianespace, said: Arianespace is honored to have been entrusted with this launch, the first European mission to Jupiter, and to play a part in expanding our understanding of the solar system and the necessary conditions for the emergence of life. In preparing for this mission, we have worked hand in hand with ESA, Airbus Defence and Space, ArianeGroup, and French space agency CNES. I take this opportunity to thank all the teams who have given so much for 10 years to bring us to todays successful result. And good luck to JUICE for the incredible journey it is about to embark on!

With the successful launch of the JUICE space probe, Ariane 5 has once again made its contribution to European space history. This exceptional mission benefited twice over from ArianeGroups expertise: we not only built and prepared Ariane 5 for this mission, but we are also involved in the JUICE spacecraft as we developed, supplied, and tested the entire propulsion system which will enable the probe to make its eight-year journey to Jupiter. I want to thank the teams from ArianeGroup and Arianespace, together with all our European partners, for this latest success of the Ariane launcher. Our launchers high reliability is due to the unfailing cooperation between the industry, ESA, and CNES, the guarantee of Europes independent access to space, said Martin Sion, CEO of ArianeGroup.

The propulsion system for the JUICE spacecraft was developed, built, and integrated in Germany by ArianeGroups Orbital Propulsion teams, and comprises the 400 N main engine to be used for Jupiter orbit injection, 20 small thrusters, and two titanium propellant tanks.

After this mission, one Ariane 5 launch remains before Ariane 6 takes up the baton, supporting Europes institutional missions and meeting the rapidly growing needs of the commercial market.

The Ariane 5 heavy-lift launcher is an ESA program carried out in cooperation between public institutions and industry across 12 European partner countries.

ArianeGroup is the lead contractor for the development and production of Ariane 5, as well as being responsible for launcher preparation operations up to lift-off. As prime contractor for Ariane 5 and Ariane 6, in charge of development and production, ArianeGroup is at the head of a vast industrial network of more than 600 companies, including 350 small and medium-size enterprises (SMEs). ArianeGroup delivers a flight-ready launcher on the launch pad to its subsidiary Arianespace, which markets and operates Ariane 5 from Europes spaceport in French Guiana. During launch campaigns, Arianespace works closely with the French space agency (CNES), the design authority for Ariane 5 and responsible for the satellite preparation facilities and the launch base.

THE LAUNCH AT A GLANCE:

- 346th launch operated by Arianespace
- More than 1150 satellites launched by Arianespace
- 1st launch operated by Arianespace in 2023
- 116th Ariane 5 launch from the CSG
- 6058kg is the total payload carried by the launched for this mission
- 90th consecutive launch with nominal operation of the Vulcain 2 main stage engine
- 116th consecutive launch with nominal operation of the solid boosters
- 156tth consecutive launch with nominal operation of the HM7B upper stage engine