Transportation
Europe Resumes Small Rocket Launches Two Years After Failure
- Vega-C provides win for continent’s struggling space industry
- Second launch of larger Ariane 6 rocket delayed to early 2025
Vega C-flight launches from Kourou, in French Guiana, on Dec. 5.
Photographer: Ronan Lietar/AFP/Getty Images
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Europe’s Vega-C rocket launched for the first time since a failure two years ago in a win for the continent’s struggling space industry.
The rocket, built by Italian manufacturer Avio SpA, blasted off from Europe’s spaceport in French Guiana around 6:20 pm local time on Thursday. The vehicle was carrying the Copernicus Sentinel-1C satellite, designed for Earth observation.