France in Space No 222

** 1: FAILURE OF THE FIRST “10 TON” ARIANE 5

Ariane 5 veered off course three minutes after take-off from Arianespace’s base in French Guyana, crashing into the Atlantic. Ariane 5 was carrying two payloads: Stentor, an experimental telecommunications satellite commissioned by CNES, and Hot Bird-7, Eutelsat SA’s television broadcast satellite. Initial data analysis performed last night showed that the countdown, engine ignition and initial phase of flight were normal. A first anomaly occurred 96 seconds into the mission, involving the cooling circuit of the Vulcain 2 engine that powers the main cryogenic stage. Then the engine speed changed and a significant flight control perturbation occurred. After the fairing was jettisoned as planned, the launcher subsequently demonstrated erratic behavior. In compliance with range safety procedures, the launcher was destroyed at approximately 456 sec. into the mission. The Ariane 5 was at an altitude of about 69 kilometers and a distance of 800 kilometers off the coast of French Guyana.
[Arianespace Press Release, 12/12/2002]

** 2: THE ITALIANS ARE RESCUING EUTELSAT

As planned, the satellite operator, Eutelsat Ltd, bid to buy 100% of its European competitor’s capital, Eutelsat. However, things are not running as smoothly as it seems for Eutelsat, since Deutch Telekom (DT) sold its 10.8% share to the Italian editor De Agostini for 210 million Euros. At the same time, Finmeccanica is said to be about to buy, alone, France Telecom’s 23.15% share so that the fourth satellite operator does not fall pray to the Americans. With Mirror International holding 20% of Telecom Italia, the Italians would become the main shareholder. Intelsat confirmed however that its bid was the most promising in every aspect. The Americans have little chance to be successful in their take over bid, now that DT sold its share. In addition, the European authorities are in favor of a European settlement.
[Le Figaro Economie, La Lettre de l’Expansion, La Tribune, 12/16/2002]

** 3: FORETOLD SUICIDE OF ASTRA 1-K

After the failure of the International Launch Services (ILS) Proton K-DM booster to place Astra 1K communications satellite into the correct orbit on November 26, the Alcate Space-built SES Global Astra 1K was stranded on a 290 km-circular orbit, very far from the 36,000 km geostationnary orbit it should have reached. The five hitech tons of the brand new satellite were voluntary sent diving into the South Pacific for safety reasons. With a total span of 37 meters (solar panels), the heaviest weight ever reached by such a civilian satcom and 10 antennae, the satellite was meant to have a 13 year-life time. It was designed to replace three Astra satellites now in orbit -out of thirteen, which are currently providing 91 million people with 100 TV and radio channels- and was to be an in-orbit spare for four others in case of failure.
[AFP Press Release, 12/10/2002]

** 4: AN IMPORTANT STEP IN REMOTE DIAGNOSIS

ESA (European Space Agency) participated on Thursday, December 5th 2002 in an ESA-coordinated demonstration in medical telediagnosis on board the French hospital ship Sirocco. In a project initiated by ESA in association with the Department of Space Medical Physiology at the University of Tours, the Vision and Robotics Laboratory in Bourges, the Sinters group in Toulouse, and CNES (French Space Agency), this was the first real-time demonstration of the use of a teleoperated robotic arm for echographic diagnosis in a remote situation. This is a very significant step in telediagnosis research, which may have implications for spaceflight medicine. In a few years, astronauts on board the International Space Station will be able to receive diagnostic attention without returning to Earth. The project has been funded by ESA as part of its Microgravity Applications Programme and Technology Transfer Programme.
[ESA Press Release 12/6/2002]

** 5: A FRENCHMAN TO BE DIRECTOR GENERAL OF ESA

The council of the European Space Agency (ESA) announced the appointment of Mr. Jean-Jacques Dordain as the next Director General of ESA, for a period of 4 years. He will succeed Mr. Antonio Rodotà, whose term of office ends on June 30, 2003. Mr. Jean-Jacques Dordain, a Frenchman born on April 14, 1946, obtained an engineering degree from Ecole Centrale (French engineering school) in 1968. Before joining ESA in 1986, he held several positions at the Office National d’Etudes et de Recherches Aerospatiales (ONERA). He was also selected by CNES (French Space Agency) among the first French astronaut candidates. “I feel very honored to have been appointed Director General of ESA and welcome this challenging opportunity. I have been working for the European Space Agency in various positions over the years. The current period offers good opportunities for ESA to be even more instrumental in building the future of European citizens and the success of Europe.” said Mr. Dordain.
[ESA Press Release, 12/10/2002]