To The Moon, Ariane! | Aero-News Network
Aero-News Network
RSS icon RSS feed
podcast icon MP3 podcast
Subscribe Aero-News e-mail Newsletter Subscribe

Airborne Unlimited -- Most Recent Daily Episodes

Episode Date

Airborne-Monday

Airborne-Tuesday

Airborne-Wednesday Airborne-Thursday

Airborne-Friday

Airborne On YouTube

Airborne-Unlimited-04.29.24

Airborne-NextGen-04.30.24

Airborne-Unlimited-05.01.24 Airborne-AffordableFlyers--05.02.24

Airborne-Unlimited-05.03.24

Mon, Sep 29, 2003

To The Moon, Ariane!

First Moon Shot in Many Moons is On the Way

It's the first time anyone but Americans or Soviets have tried to reach the Moon, and, not surprisingly, it's a European effort.

Saturday morning, the Kourou launch station in French Guiana saw an Ariane-5 make a spectacular launch, starting a long trip that will set a couple satellites into Earth orbit, and one 815-pound probe, that's going to check out the moon, starting in late December of next year.

The INSAT 3-E, India's satellite, and France's Eutelsat are the Earth-orbiting projects. They'll be on-station 'way sooner.

The moon probe, called SMART-1, will meander quite a bit in that time, covering 62 million miles, to reach the moon, which is a quarter-million miles away. The reason it's taking so long is to save fuel -- the trip will be made with about 16 gallons of the precious stuff. [In a straight line, with planetary alignments just so, 62 million miles of travel could get you to Mars --ed.]

Electric power to the moon, Mars, and beyond?

SMART-1 will be propelled mostly by electricity, powered by solar panels, according to Giuseppe RACCA, the ESA Project Manager. David Southwood, ESA's Director of Scientific Programs, told a news conference in Kourou, "With SMART-1 we can test propulsion in deep-space orbit. The next step, I hope, will be a Mars mission."

Who's next to Space? Red China; they have a military project that demands space dominance; a manned program is an integral part of that scheme.

FMI: www.ssc.se/ssd/smart1.html

Advertisement

More News

ANN's Daily Aero-Term (04.30.24): Runway Centerline Lighting

Runway Centerline Lighting Flush centerline lights spaced at 50-foot intervals beginning 75 feet from the landing threshold and extending to within 75 feet of the opposite end of t>[...]

ANN's Daily Aero-Linx (04.30.24)

Aero Linx: Air Force Global Strike Command Air Force Global Strike Command, activated August 7, 2009, is a major command with headquarters at Barksdale Air Force Base, Louisiana, i>[...]

Airborne 04.24.24: INTEGRAL E, Elixir USA, M700 RVSM

Also: Viasat-uAvionix, UL94 Fuel Investigation, AF Materiel Command, NTSB Safety Alert Norges Luftsportforbund chose Aura Aero's little 2-seater in electric trim for their next gli>[...]

Airborne 04.29.24: EAA B-25 Rides, Textron 2024, G700 Deliveries

Also: USCG Retires MH-65 Dolphins, Irish Aviation Authority, NATCA Warns FAA, Diamond DA42 AD This summer, history enthusiasts will have a unique opportunity to experience World Wa>[...]

Airborne-NextGen 04.23.24: UAVOS UVH 170, magni650 Engine, World eVTOL Directory

Also: Moya Delivery Drone, USMC Drone Pilot, Inversion RAY Reentry Vehicle, RapidFlight UAVOS has recently achieved a significant milestone in public safety and emergency services >[...]

blog comments powered by Disqus



Advertisement

Advertisement

Podcasts

Advertisement

© 2007 - 2024 Web Development & Design by Pauli Systems, LC