Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

Skip to comments.

(FRENCH) Super rocket explodes on launch (OOPS ALERT)
BBC News ^ | December 12, 2002 | BBC News

Posted on 12/11/2002 5:11:48 PM PST by MadIvan



Europe's new heavy-lift rocket has failed on its maiden flight.

The Ariane 5-ESCA blasted off from the Kourou spaceport in French Guiana at 1921 (2221 GMT) local time and blew up three minutes later.

We have already known failures, we will know more

Jean-Yves Le Gall, Arianespace
No explanation for the loss has yet been given by officials from Arianespace, the rocket's operators, who have scheduled a media conference for Thursday.

It is not clear whether the vehicle suffered a catastrophic failure or controllers noticed something was wrong and took the painful decision to destroy the rocket.

Main stage

Wednesday's launch was the second attempt to get the Ariane 5-ESCA airborne. The first countdown on 28 November was halted because of a computer glitch.

The launcher was a beefed-up version of the vehicle that first went into full commercial service in 1999.

Wednesday's explosion was the fourth failure of an Ariane 5 rocket in its 14-mission history. The failure is likely to halt Ariane 5 flights indefinitely.

Early investigations are likely to centre on the new components of the rocket.

UK space scientist Dr Andrew Coates, who lost experiments on the first Ariane 5 failure in 1986, said: "This seemed to happen just after the solid fuel boosters would have been jettisoned but still while the main stage was burning so the most likely explanation is that something went wrong with the main stage."

Comet question

The setback will now put an enormous question mark over Europe's upcoming science mission Rosetta, designed to put a lander on Comet Wirtanen.

The Rosetta craft was due to launch on the next Ariane 5 flight on 12 January. Its eight-year journey to the comet requires the probe to be swung around Mars once and Earth twice to get it in the right position to catch the comet.

"It has quite a narrow launch window and if it doesn't go in January I don't know when it will go quite frankly," UK space technologist Dr Chris Welch said.

He speculated the mission might have to risk a flight rather than see years of research and millions of euros go to waste.

Cruel reminder

The Ariane 5 launcher lost on Wednesday was carrying a double payload: a Hotbird TM7 for the European telecoms consortium Eutelsat, and Stentor, an experimental communications satellite for the French space research institute CNES.

The debris would have fallen into the Atlantic Ocean. The satellites were likely to have been insured.

The boss of Arianespace, Jean-Yves Le Gall, immediately apologised to his two customers.

"At this stage it is too early to give precise reasons for this failure," he said.

"Our job is difficult. It's at moments like this we are cruelly reminded of it," he added. "We have already known failures, we will know more."


TOPICS: Extended News; Foreign Affairs; News/Current Events; United Kingdom
KEYWORDS: ariane; france; holdmafromage; kaboom
Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 41-6061-8081-100101-117 next last
To: Chemist_Geek
Think Chernobyl.
81 posted on 12/12/2002 6:45:21 AM PST by Squawk 8888
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 73 | View Replies]

To: Cobra64
The only thing France has contributed to mankind is the bikini. The only car on this planet that may be worse than a Pugeot, Citroen or Renault is a Trabant. They were made in East Germany.
82 posted on 12/12/2002 6:51:28 AM PST by wjcsux
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 18 | View Replies]

To: Billthedrill
You are too funny.
83 posted on 12/12/2002 6:51:51 AM PST by jjm2111
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 6 | View Replies]

To: Poohbah
Margret Thatcher forced the British government out of the automotive business. British cars have steadily improved.
84 posted on 12/12/2002 6:53:34 AM PST by wjcsux
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 3 | View Replies]

To: MadIvan
I fondly recall the day my brother-in-law rolled up in his new Reneault Alliant to show it off. After the obligatory walk-around and his short speech on the wonders of this car, I asked him to take me for a ride. The door handle came off in my hand.
85 posted on 12/12/2002 6:54:32 AM PST by Orbiting_Rosie's_Head
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: MadIvan; dighton
I leave the comparisons between French rockets and their automobiles to you lot.

As the former owner of no less than three Peugeots I know what you mean.

86 posted on 12/12/2002 6:58:23 AM PST by aculeus
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 72 | View Replies]

To: crypt2k
That's hilarious.
87 posted on 12/12/2002 6:59:19 AM PST by jjm2111
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 46 | View Replies]

To: Saturn_V
I hate seeing this, since I'm peripherially involved in the commercial space industry. Nothing like taking a bird you put 3-4 years of your life into (most commercial spacecraft are built essentially by hand from scratch) and losing it to a launch vehicle failure.

Indeed. I have been "on console" for three major vehicle losses during launch. :-(

88 posted on 12/12/2002 7:00:09 AM PST by RadioAstronomer
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 47 | View Replies]

Comment #89 Removed by Moderator

To: crypt2k
LOL!!!!!!!!!!!!
90 posted on 12/12/2002 7:16:43 AM PST by Gary Boldwater
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 46 | View Replies]

Comment #91 Removed by Moderator

To: MadIvan
Good!

Knowing the French, they probably had intel satellites on board that were purchased by al Qaeda, Iran, Iraq and ?

They would have been more than glad to take pictures of our troops, bases and ships and sent them to the Islamofascists.
92 posted on 12/12/2002 8:10:11 AM PST by Grampa Dave
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 1 | View Replies]

To: All
Just thinking about France makes me laugh. I'm trying real hard to remember anything they have accomplished that they can boast about in the past 50 years.
93 posted on 12/12/2002 8:15:23 AM PST by 1Old Pro
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 50 | View Replies]

To: Karl B
Ok, where did the bikini come from, and what has France done well besides surrender?
94 posted on 12/12/2002 8:52:54 AM PST by wjcsux
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 91 | View Replies]

To: Karl B
Idiot. Have you ever heard of the gravity law and Newton ?

,,, I've never heard of KarlB and I'll admit that I'd given satellite launching little thought, other than knowing the Chinese can do it a whole lot cheaper than the US and get it right too. That seems to be the trend with them these days though, doesn't it? I'm glad to know there's a rocket scientist like you whom I can turn to for future advice. Thanx for confirming, firstly, that I'm an idiot and secondly, your clear superiority.

95 posted on 12/12/2002 11:36:31 AM PST by shaggy eel
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 57 | View Replies]

To: rogue yam
Yes,yes. You are confusing momemtum and energy. BTW, I'm am missile engineer, not a rocket scientist. It takes less energy to nudge a satellite in equatorial orbit over into a polar orbit than to blast against it directly into polar orbit. See Bate, et al. Fundamentals of Astrodynamics. A cool book and very accessable.

http://www.amazon.com/exec/obidos/ASIN/0486600610/qid=1039738344/sr=2-1/ref=sr_2_1/102-2565661-7311330
96 posted on 12/12/2002 4:14:37 PM PST by Lonesome in Massachussets
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 50 | View Replies]

Comment #97 Removed by Moderator

Comment #98 Removed by Moderator

Comment #99 Removed by Moderator

To: Karl B
Do you speak French?
100 posted on 12/12/2002 5:06:11 PM PST by Cobra64
[ Post Reply | Private Reply | To 97 | View Replies]


Navigation: use the links below to view more comments.
first previous 1-20 ... 41-6061-8081-100101-117 next last

Disclaimer: Opinions posted on Free Republic are those of the individual posters and do not necessarily represent the opinion of Free Republic or its management. All materials posted herein are protected by copyright law and the exemption for fair use of copyrighted works.

Free Republic
Browse · Search
News/Activism
Topics · Post Article

FreeRepublic, LLC, PO BOX 9771, FRESNO, CA 93794
FreeRepublic.com is powered by software copyright 2000-2008 John Robinson