All-Italian launch from French Guiana lofts innovative environmental satellite

 A Vega rocket fired into orbit Thursday night from French Guiana with Italy’s PRISMA hyperspectral Earth-imaging satellite, commencing a busy period for the Vega launcher program as engineers prepare for the debut of the more powerful Vega-C booster in early 2020 and study a lighter variant to better compete in the growing smallsat launch market.

The 98-foot-tall (30-meter) rocket fired its solid-fueled first stage at 10:50:35 p.m. French Guiana time Thursday (9:50:35 p.m. EDT; 0150:35 Friday), instantly sending the launcher into the late-night sky over the Guiana Space Center, a tropical space base on the northeastern coast of South America.

The Vega’s first stage nozzle swiveled to align the rocket with a trajectory north from French Guiana, propelling the launcher faster than the speed of sound within 30 seconds as the booster ramped up to full power with nearly 700,000 pounds of thrust. The first stage consumed its pre-packed solid propellant in less than two minutes, and high-power tracking cameras showed the booster dropping away as the Vega’s second stage ignited to continue the flight into space.

#environmentalpollution  #globalwarming #environmentalhealth #environmentalwaste #environmentalchemistry

Please visit: https://pollution.conferenceseries.com/