OrbitalHub

Credits: ESA/CNES/Arianespace РOptique vid̩o du CSG, L. Boyer

Arianespace was founded in 1980. With twenty-four shareholders from ten European countries (among which CNES holds 34% and EADS 30%), Arianespace is the world’s first commercial space transportation company.

The workhorse of Arianespace has been the Ariane launch vehicle.

Five versions of Ariane have served the company so far: Ariane 1, with the first successful launch on December 24, 1979, Ariane 2, launched for the first time on November 20, 1987, Ariane 3, starting its service on August 4, 1984, Ariane 4, launched on June 15, 1988, and Ariane 5, with the first successful flight on October 30, 1997.

The first launch of Ariane 5, a.k.a. Flight 501, ended with the vehicle being destroyed by its automated self-destruct system, after the high accelerations caused the inertial guidance system to crash. The crash was caused by, I quote, one of the most infamous computer bugs in history. If you like, you can take a look at the Ada code that caused the malfunction. But enough with the dark memories, this is an anniversary after all…

Since its inception, Arianespace has signed over 300 contracts that resulted in more than 277 satellite launches. According to Arianespace, Ariane launchers have delivered more than half of all commercial satellites now in service. The year 2009 was a very successful year for Ariane 5. The launcher orbited nine commercial satellites, the Herschel space telescope, the Planck scientific observatory, and the Helios 2B observation satellite. Ariane 5 has proven to be a versatile launch vehicle, capable of handling a wide range of missions.

The challenges for 2010 are many, as Arianespace is planning up to seven Ariane 5 launches. Two new launch vehicles will join Ariane 5 as part of the Arianespace family of launchers: the Vega small launcher and the Soyuz medium launcher.

You can read more about Arianespace, its mission, and the solutions provided to customers around the world on the Arianespace website.