Artist’s view of Vega VV16 with the Small Spacecraft Mission Service (SSMS) dispenser and SAT-AIS. Visible are the Zefiro-9 upper phase, the Attitude Vernier Upper Module (AVUM) and the SSMS dispenser with its payload of satellites. Credit: ESA – J. Huart
Tune in to ESA Web TELEVISION from 02: 36 BST / 03: 36 CEST on 2 September to see the go back to flight of Vega on its launching rideshare objective committed to light satellites.
Vega will take off from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana bring 53 satellites on its brand-new dispenser called the Small Spacecraft Mission Service, or SSMS. The objective will last about 124 minutes.
This brand-new ridesharing service is planned to grow area innovations in Europe by making it simpler for those with light satellites of 1–500 kg to discover practical launch chances. Those riding together share the expense of launch, making it more budget-friendly too. There are 21 consumers sharing this launch.
Artist’s view of Vega VV16 with the Small Spacecraft Mission Service (SSMS) dispenser and SAT-AIS.
Visible are the Zefiro-9 upper phase, the Attitude Vernier Upper Module (AVUM) and the SSMS dispenser with its payload of satellites. Credit: ESA – J. Huart
Vega will launch its 53 satellites gradually in a collaborated series into 2 Sun-simultaneous orbits 515 and 530 km above Earth.
ESA has actually added to the advancement of 4 payloads on board – the 113 kg ESAIL microsatellite and 3 CubeSats: Simba, Picasso, and FSSCat which brings pioneering AI innovation called Φ-sat-1.
The launch window for this flight extends from 1 to 4 September, taking into account weather and enabling a number of launch efforts if required.
Artist’s view of Vega VV16 with the Small Spacecraft Mission Service (SSMS) dispenser and SAT-AIS.
Visible are the Zefiro-9 upper phase, the Attitude Vernier Upper Module (AVUM) and the SSMS dispenser with its payload of satellites. Credit:
ESA – J. Huart
Liftoff timing for flight VV16:
| French Guiana | Washington D.C. | UTC / GMT | Paris and Rome |
| 22: 51 on 1 September | 21: 51 on 1 September | 01: 51 on 2 September | 03: 51 on 2 September |
Watch live through ESA Web TELEVISION 03: 36 – 05: 00 CEST.
Key minutes
03: 51 – Liftoff
04: 31 – Separation from Vega of the very first batch of satellites
04: 43 – Separation from Vega of the 2nd batch of satellites consisting of ESAIL
05: 32 – Separation from Vega of very first CubeSat
05: 36 – Final CubeSat separation
05: 55 – End of the Vega objective
