Upgraded Ariane 5 Fails During Launch of Two European Satellites

An Ariane 5 ECA failed shortly after launching Hot Bird 7 and Stentor. The rocket was launched from Kourou, Pad ELA3, at 22:21 UTC on December 11, plunging into the Atlantic 800 to 1,000 km from the launch site.

The sequence of failure has established that the first anomaly occurred 96 seconds into flight with a slight drop in the pressure of the coolant system of the Vulcain 2 main engine. At 187 seconds, the fairing was jettisoned, as planned. By 196 seconds the rocket was at an altitude of 150 km, but the Vulcain 2 engine problems were causing the rocket to begin to fly in an "erratic trajectory" and it started losing altitude. At 455 seconds, the rocket had dropped to 69 km when its auto-destruct mechanism was activated. 

With the introduction of the ESCA, the original performance of the Ariane 5 was being boosted from 5.9 metric tonnes to 10 metric tonnes. The Vulcain 2 main engine, made by Snecma, is an upgraded version of the engine used on earlier Ariane 5 launches. It was modified to increase thrust by 20 percent, to increase the amount of cargo that can be launched. The Vulcain 2 burns a mixture with 20 percent more liquid oxygen under slightly higher pressure than the previous model. FiatAvio developed a new oxygen turbopump, capable of 13,000 rpm and delivering pressure of 161 bar. The capacity of the liquid oxygen tank was increased by 15 metric tonnes. This was accomplished, without altering the structure of the stage, by lowering the bulkhead between the liquid oxygen and hydrogen tanks by 640mm. Another change in the Vulcain 2 engine was a new nozzle divergent, manufactured by Volvo Aero, to enables the emissions from the turbopumps to be reinjected into the main system to improve the engine performance at high altitudes. The ESCA was scheduled to be followed in 2006 by the Ariane 5 ESCB, with a capacity to launch 12 metric tonnes into geostationary transfer orbit.

This is the third failure of an Ariane 5 rocket in 14 flights. One additional test flight reached a lower than planned orbit, and is considered by many industry analysts to be at least a partial failure. Since the Ariane program first started in 1979, 11 of its 157 missions have failed. The next mission for Ariane 5, the original version, is launch of the Rosetta comet probe which is scheduled for January 12. The launch must take place by January 31 for the spacecraft to encounter its target. Rosetta is to go into orbit around a comet and deploy a lander to its surface. Two launches of the enhanced Ariane 5 were planned for 2003. An Ariane 4 is scheduled to launch NSS 6 in mid-December, as scheduled. The Ariane 4 will be retired from service in early 2003 after two more flights.

Hotbird 7 was to have been positioned at 13°E replacing Hot Bird. It has an estimated value of over US$250 million (250 million euros). Hotbird 7 was to be owned and operated by Eutelsat. The Astrium-built satellite carried 40 Ku-band transponders, using a superwidebeam antenna and two steerable spot beam antennas. Eutelsat successfully launched satellites on the Atlas 5 (Hotbird 6) and Delta 4 (Eutlesat W5) first flights earlier this year. Hot Bird 3 still has a life expectancy of 10 years. Eutelsat is looking at launching another replacement in 2005. Eutelsat operates a fleet of 20 satellites. Eutelsat is currently the subject of a potential acquisition with Intelsat and PanAmSat Corp making bids of more than US$3 billion for the recently privatized company.

Stentor was to demonstrate the feasibility and usefulness of a large number of communications technologies and satellite components during its 9-year mission. Taking part in the Stentor project along with CNES were France Telecom and the French Ministry of Defense. About 80 percent of the satellite's part count were new to the satellite communications industry. Equipment and new telecommunications methods were to be demonstrated and evaluated using Stentor. Stentor was jointly built by Astrium and Alcatel Space. It was to have been positioned at 11°W. Stentor cost US$385 million (380 million euros).

Depending upon the details of the coverage, the failure could be a blow for the companies that insure and underwrite satellite launches. Hotbird 7 may not have been fully covered, and Stentor, being a government satellites was probably self-insured by the French government. Space launch insurers were expecting premiums of US$370 million this year, for risk coverage of between US$800 million and a billion dollars. Following the Proton Astra 1K failure, Italian underwriter Assicurazioni Generali SpA, once the largest member of the space insurance community, decided to withdraw from the space insurance market.  Generali felt that the current volatility and uncertainty within the space sector is incompatible with its long term strategy of sustained development. When conditions improve the company might re-enter the market. Generali has been involved in space insurance for almost 40 years. Although it was once a major underwriter, in recent years Generali was engaging only small amounts in space insurance policies. Other companies may also consider following, and exit the space insurance market. The industry is now bracing for a rise in insurance premiums. Because premiums from insurers may become too expensive, calls are being made for a form of self-insurance with risk shared among rocket manufacturers.

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