Abstract
Launchers are one of the most recognisable elements of a nation’s space activities. This symbol is even stronger in the context of Europe’s spacefaring identity, as its Ariane 5 launcher is recognised both within the general public and among the actors in the global space community. With a successful track record exceeding 30 years, the Ariane launcher family is both a shining example of European achievements in space and, more broadly, the result of technological and scientific integration processes at the European level.
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Notes
- 1.
The following paragraph is entirely based on the contribution of Jan Wouters and Rik Hansen (Chap. 2).
- 2.
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It has to be noted that the downstream sector (in particular telecommunication applications) is much more viable economically than the upstream sector.
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Such technological breakthroughs are currently being investigated in Europe, as the UK and ESA recently invested in a potentially revolutionary technology, air-breathing rocket engines. See De Selding, Peter. “News from UK Space Conference 2013. Britain to Invest in Air-breathing Rocket Engine.” 16 July 2013. Space News 8 September 2013. http://www.spacenews.com/article/launch-report/36284news-from-uk-space-conference-2013-britain-to-invest-in-air-breathing.
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OECD. Space 2030 Tackling Society’s Challenges. Paris: OECD, 2005: 112
- 12.
Ibid.: 11
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Ibid.: 5
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Bigot, Bernard; d’Escatha, Yannick; Collet-Billon, Laurent. L’Enjeu d’une Politique Européenne de Lanceurs: Assurer Durablement à l’Europe un Accès Autonome à l’Espace. 18 May 2009: 6
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The German SAR-Lupe satellites were launched aboard a Russian Kosmos rocket, the Italian Cosmo-Skymed satellites aboard a U.S. Delta II rocket and the Italian Sicral 1B aboard a Russian-Ukrainian Zenit launcher
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MCO stands for the French “Maintien en Conditions Opérationnelles”
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See the contribution of Samuel R. Schubert (Chap. 4).
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Al-Ekabi, C. (2015). European Access to Space: Factors of Autonomy. In: Al-Ekabi, C. (eds) European Autonomy in Space. Studies in Space Policy, vol 10. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-11110-0_9
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