One of the challenges of launching from Vandenberg Space Station in California is seeing the launch. A marine layer of low clouds often arrives from the Pacific, causing rockets to disappear within seconds of liftoff. This was the case on May 28, when a Falcon 9 launched EarthCARE, an Earth science spacecraft developed by the European Space Agency.
“We saw the takeoff and, of course, you hear the sounds. Then you continue looking at the screen,” said Josef Aschbacher, ESA Director General. “But it doesn’t matter whether you see it or not. What is important is that the satellite was delivered safely.”
Aschbacher was in California, rather than French Guiana, for the EarthCARE launch due to what he often called the “launcher crisis”, which forced the ESA and European Commission to turn to SpaceX to launch scientific missions such as the EarthCARE and Galileo navigation satellites. Development delays, launch failures and geopolitics have combined to deprive Europe of its own means of access to space.
However, the sky is starting to clear up for Europe. The inaugural flight of Ariane 6 is now scheduled for the first half of July. On the same day as EarthCARE’s launch, Avio, prime contractor of the Vega C rocket, successfully tested a redesigned solid-state rocket engine, a step toward returning that vehicle to flight by the end of the year.
Aschbacher attended the launch days after a series of events in Brussels, including a Space Council meeting involving ESA and European Union member states. ESA also announced the first signatories to its Zero Debris Charter aimed at promoting space sustainability and selected two companies, Thales Alenia Space and The Exploration Company, for contracts to study commercial cargo vehicles that could be precursors to European crewed spaceships.
Aschbacher spoke with SpaceNews hours after the EarthCARE launch, discussing both the launch and other key developments at ESA. A condensed version of this interview follows.
EarthCARE is the second mission launched by ESA on Falcon 9, after Euclid last year. How was the relationship with SpaceX?
Aschbacher: It worked very well. We had a good experience with Euclid last year and now with EarthCARE. It’s really professional. Our teams and those of SpaceX work very well on all the different subjects.
You must, however, be relieved that Ariane 6 is nearing its first launch.
Yes, it feels good because I hear a lot of questions: why are you launching with Falcon and not with Ariane? At the Berlin Air Show (June 5-9), I will announce a target date for the first attempt of the maiden flight, which will take place in the first two weeks of July. We are getting really close and I can say we are on the right track.
What are the main steps leading to this launch?
We conducted a very thorough review of qualifications, which was successful. As with any review, a number of actions need to be closed, and this is currently underway. There is nothing that is an obstacle. Then there are the logistics at Kourou, at the launch base and everything leading up to the launch campaign. This all takes place in a rather nominal fashion. That’s still a lot of work, but nothing that worries me at this point that would make a launch in that two-week window impossible.
How important was the static fire test of the Vega C that just took place?
It was very important. We see that we are on track for the return of flight by the end of the year. This test today was the most important step: we have another test firing in October, but today’s test confirms that the redesign of the nozzle with the new carbon-carbon inserts is good. The measured thrust curve is nominal and follows the expected theoretical line, meaning the engine is performing well.
ESA announced on May 22 that it had selected Thales Alenia Space and The Exploration Company for study contracts for its commercial cargo program. ESA
officials previously said they would award up to three contracts. Why choose only two?
The evaluation of industrial proposals was very thorough, as we do for all purchases of space equipment. This led to two companies exceeding the threshold required to issue a contract. So these are the two companies that signed last week. We had two others that were below that threshold and we had a few iterations with them. But even clarifying some of the questions we had asked did not result in a proposal strong enough for us to feel confident in signing a third contract. It’s important that there is competition, but it also shows that we are very solid and rigorous in the selection of companies.
The ESA also announced the same day the first group of 12 countries to sign the Zero Debris Charter. What are the next steps in this effort?
The next step will take place at the Berlin Air Show, which will be open to companies and organizations. In total we have around 100 expressions of interest. I don’t want to give any away before this event, but I can tell you that we have some very interesting companies lining up for this signing. We would really like to use this Zero Debris Charter to show that we are a champion of sustainability not only on planet Earth, where we work a lot on climate-related issues, but also in orbit.
Are you concerned that the Zero Debris Charter could conflict with the EU’s proposed space law, which would contain its own provisions regarding space sustainability?
We really need to question the European Commission on space law. It’s not something we’re involved in. I don’t know the text of the law, so I can’t comment on what will be included. Of course, we are very interested in reading the text and analyzing it. Member States have already asked us at ESA, once the text is published, to analyze it and see what it means for businesses in their countries. It is certain that space law will have an impact on the way we develop our programs. Issues such as standardization (of national space laws) will be crucial.
When you became Director General of the ESA, you made improving relations with the European Commission one of your priorities. What progress have you made and how has this affected efforts such as the IRIS² constellation?
In my Agenda 2025, I have placed cooperation between ESA and the European Union as a top priority. I worked at the European Commission as a staff member for a few years, so I know it very well, and I worked with the Commission building Copernicus for decades. For me, there is no choice but to collaborate extremely well between the Commission and the ESA. This is exactly what we do.
We have flagship programs like Copernicus and Galileo which are only possible because ESA and the European Union work together. Without one or the other, they would not exist, certainly not in their current quality, so there is no choice. It is absolutely necessary to work well together, which is why I am very determined to do so.
IRIS² is next in line, but there are still some questions left. The responsibility lies with the Commission to sign this first contract. At ESA, we provide technical support and advice to the Commission during the evaluation of proposals and then their implementation. We have around 600 million euros on the ESA side, in terms of our Member States’ budgets, for its implementation, with a focus on technology development. The European Commission has also committed to an agreement to grant more than 300 million euros to the ESA from its budget to ensure the smooth functioning of this cooperation and implementation.
Overall, ESA today implements around 80% of the EU space budget for Copernicus and Galileo, and I hope that as we continue we will be the implementing agency EU space programmes. I will do everything I can to continue this path for decades to come.
This article first appeared in the June 2024 issue of SpaceNews magazine.