Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana is almost ready for Ariane 6. Take a tour of the new launch complex and its various facilities.
Completed by November were the two flame trenches, the mobile gantry, the water tower, and the launch table structure. See the mock-ups of the P120C boosters on the launch pad. Next to them is the fixed umbilical mast, which is also ready. It provides power and environmental control connections to Ariane 6 and its payloads from mission preparations through the countdown and liftoff.
At liftoff, the fiery exhaust plumes will rush 25 m deep below the launch table and be diverted into the flame trenches by a 600-tonne steel deflector deluged by cooling water fed from the water tower.
The main remaining structures to be finished are part of the cladding of the mobile gantry, the lightning towers that will be erected around the launch table to protect against lightening strikes, and parts of the additional surrounding areas.
Click here for original story, Ariane 6 launch complex – November 2019
Source: ESA Top Multimedia