The end of 2003 is a busy time for Arianespace commercially and for launch activity, and the Arianespace Web site http://www.arianespace.com has the latest details!
Arianespace today (December 17) signed a new launch contract to orbit the MSG 3 weather satellite for Europe. This spacecraft will be carried by an Ariane 5 in 2009, and is the 9th satellite entrusted to Ariane by the Eumetsat organization.
Also, preparations continue at two very different launch sites for missions with Arianespace involvement.
At the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the Arianespace/Starsem ST12 mission is nearing its December 28 liftoff with the AMOS 2 telecommunications satellite from Israel. This mission is a joint effort of Arianespace and Starsem, and results from the two companies’ flexible launcher family philosophy. See the latest Mission Update on Flight ST12 in the News & Information section.
Also in News & Information, read about the startup of preparations for Arianespace Flight 158 at the Spaceport in French Guiana. Flight 158 will launch the European Space Agency’s Rosetta comet-chasing deep space probe next February