LAUNCH READINESS FOR MILESTONE ARIANE 5 MISSION IS VALIDATED

Ariane 5’s deep space science mission has been given the green light for liftoff after a successful launch readiness review of the heavy-lift vehicle, its Herschel and Planck payloads, the Spaceport’s infrastructure and the network of downrange tracking stations. This validation clears the way for tomorrow’s rollout of the vehicle from its final assembly building to the ELA-3 launch zone.