Futuristic engines ArianeGroup for ESA aerospace program

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The three engines for Europe’s new Ariane 6 launcher have now completed their qualification tests, following the successful qualification testing of the P120C solid propulsion engine on October 7 at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

Ariane 6 is a program managed and funded by the European Space Agency (ESA) for which ArianeGroup is design authority and industrial prime contractor. ArianeGroup is responsible for development, production with its industrial partners and operations via its subsidiary Arianespace.

The success of the tests for the P120C engine follows the qualification test campaigns for the Vinci and Vulcain 2.1 liquid propulsion engines, held  respectively in 2018 and 2019. The two engines have been already delivered to the relevant sites in Bremen, Germany, and Les Mureaux, France, for the Ariane 6 maiden flight. The three types engines use two different propulsion technologies: liquid hydrogen-oxygen propulsion for the core stage Vulcain 2.1 engine and the re-ignitable Vinci engine on the upper stage. Solid propulsion for The P120C engine fitted to the boosters which help propel Ariane 6 beyond the gravitational pull of earth’s atmosphere.

The P120C rocket will equip Ariane 62 (Ariane 6 in its configuration with two strap-on boosters) and Ariane 64 (four strap-on boosters) as well as the first stage of the Vega-C launcher. This third and last successful test of the solid propellant P120C rocket, in the Ariane 6 configuration, paves the way for final qualification of the P120C by the European Space Agency (ESA).

Additionally, this last engine test was also the first ‘system’ test of the booster for the new European launcher, which features a nozzle controlled by electric jacks powered by thermal cells (a world first in ignition by laser and optical fiber). The same test also validated the interactions between ground means and on-board equipment thanks to a new technology communication bus.

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