What are the major rockets besides Ariane 6?: The first launch of Europe’s new Ariane 6 rocket is scheduled for next week, but it will enter a rapidly evolving heavy space launcher industry that is becoming more and more dominated by SpaceX.
These are a few more massive rockets vying for the lucrative contract to launch satellites and other missions into orbit.
On July 9, the largest rocket launcher operated by the European Space Agency is expected to take out from Europe’s spaceport located in Kourou, French Guiana.
It will take the place of the reliable rocket Ariane 5, which completed the final of 117 missions over almost thirty years in 2023.
Ariane 6 will be able to carry 4.5 tonnes of payload, including satellites, into geostationary orbit at an altitude of 36,000 kilometres above Earth when it launches using two rockets. Geostationary satellites appear fixed at a specific location because they follow the rotation of the Earth.
Also, it will be able to carry over 10 tonnes into low Earth orbit, which is only a few hundred kilometres above the surface. Low Earth orbit objects, such as the International Space Station, rotate significantly more quickly and appear to be mobile, in contrast to geostationary orbits.
According to the company Euroconsult, eighty-five percent of the satellites that are deployed by 2032 will be located in this lower zone.
Ariane 6 will be able to carry 11.5 tonnes into geostationary orbit and 21.6 tonnes into low Earth orbit when it launches with four rockets, which is scheduled for early next year.
Its reusable Vinci engine in its upper stage will also enable it to launch constellations of satellites into various orbits.
Nevertheless, the remaining portion of the rocket is not reusable, in contrast to its main rival, SpaceX’s billionaire Elon Musk’s Falcon 9.
Reusable rockets like the Falcon 9 have taken the lead in the industry. It has made 350 launches since 2010, of which 91 were for SpaceX’s Starlink satellite internet system last year, accounting for two thirds of the total.
More than eight tonnes can be carried into geostationary orbit by Falcon 9 and about twenty-three tonnes into low-Earth orbit.
SpaceX’s rival Arianespace claims that SpaceX charged NASA and the US government more for using the Falcon 9, allowing the US company to charge less to its other commercial clients.
The bigger and more potent Falcon Heavy is another rocket in SpaceX’s fleet.
Additionally, it is developing the enormous Starship rocket, the most potent rocket ever constructed, which can lift up to 250 tonnes when not in use and 150 tonnes when it is.
The Starship blew up on three of the prior test flights, but last month the rocket kept together and made a successful splashdown for the first time.
NASA, Blue Origin’s first customer, has announced that the reusable New Glenn will finally launch in September, after years of delays.
Ariane 6 stands 62 metres tall, while the rocket is almost 100 metres tall. It will have the capacity to transport 45 tonnes into low Earth orbit and 13 tonnes into geostationary orbit.
Although the US startup led by Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos is mum about its order book, it is anticipated that the rocket would assist in the rollout of Amazon’s Kuiper satellite internet system.
In January, the United Launch Alliance, a partnership between Boeing and Lockheed Martin, successfully launched its first Vulcan Centaur rocket.
It will take the place of the business’s reliable Atlas V and Delta IV rockets, which are the preferred institutional launch vehicles in the US.
With up to six boosters, the reusable engine rocket can carry over 15 tonnes into geostationary orbit and over 27 tonnes into low-Earth orbit.
In February, Japan’s new flagship H3 rocket took off for its first flight. It is capable of launching 6.5 tonnes into geostationary orbit with up to four rockets.
The fourth test flight of Russia’s ageing Proton rocket replacement, which was first launched in 2014, took place in April.
It has the capacity to transfer 24.5 tonnes into low Earth orbit and 5.4 tonnes into geostationary orbit.
Since 2016, China has conducted 12 launches of the Long March 5. In low Earth orbit, it can carry 25 tonnes, while in geostationary orbit, it can carry 14 tonnes.
