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Italy switches from Arianespace to SpaceX for launch contract

Capitalism in space: Because of the two recent launch failures of Arianespace’s Vega rocket (built mostly in Italy), the Italian space agency (ASI) has decided to take the launch of an Earth observation satellite from Arianespace and award the launch contract instead to SpaceX.

The article at the link describes in detail the history and politics that make this decision significant. Essentially, because Arianespace in the past decade has failed to meet the challenge of SpaceX, so that its launches continue to be more expensive, this government-subsidized business has tried to force nations in the European Space Agency (ESA) to use Arianespace rockets via political agreements.

With this decision Italy is defying that pressure, which in turn is going to increase the pressure on Arianespace to finally step up its game, or die from lack of business. For example, when the ESA agreed to have Arianespace build its next generation rocket, the Ariane 6, it failed to require it to be reuseable. The Ariane 6 rocket was therefore designed as an expendable rocket, which meant that right from the start it could not compete with SpaceX’s Falcon 9. It has therefore failed to win launch contracts.

Expect the Ariane 6 to continue to fade as the years pass, simply because the bureaucrats in ESA and Arianespace refused to take their competition seriously.

Genesis cover

On Christmas Eve 1968 three Americans became the first humans to visit another world. What they did to celebrate was unexpected and profound, and will be remembered throughout all human history. Genesis: the Story of Apollo 8, Robert Zimmerman's classic history of humanity's first journey to another world, tells that story, and it is now available as both an ebook and an audiobook, both with a foreword by Valerie Anders and a new introduction by Robert Zimmerman.

 
The ebook is available everywhere for $5.99 (before discount) at amazon, or direct from my ebook publisher, ebookit. If you buy it from ebookit you don't support the big tech companies and the author gets a bigger cut much sooner.


The audiobook is also available at all these vendors, and is also free with a 30-day trial membership to Audible.
 

"Not simply about one mission, [Genesis] is also the history of America's quest for the moon... Zimmerman has done a masterful job of tying disparate events together into a solid account of one of America's greatest human triumphs."--San Antonio Express-News

6 comments

  • Skunk Bucket

    If the quality control on Italian-made rockets is anything like that on the Italian-made Fiat 500 (often listed as the least reliable new car for sale in the US), I can’t blame them for going to SpaceX. Rocketry is hard, though sometimes we forget because SpaceX somehow makes it look easy.

  • Calvin Dodge

    “If the quality control on Italian-made rockets is anything like that on the Italian-made Fiat 500 …”

    It’s an Italian tradition. My Dad’s Fiat Strada had many repairs, proving the backronym of “Fix It Again, Tony!”

  • Skunk Bucket

    I drove a Strada in my Driver’s Ed classes and it seemed like a very nice little car, comparable to the VW Rabbit (Golf) of the time. Of course, that was on our parking lot driving range where we never went over 15mph, and it had less than 10k miles on it. I haven’t seen one on the road in thirty years, and I’m sure there’s a very good reason for that!

  • sippin_bourbon

    Wait till the boss hears about this.

    Fuggedaboutit!

  • I do not forget that the Italians were once Romans: we stand on big shoulders. Italian machinery is great; for a few hours. Exception would be bicycles; got it going on, there. Makes sense to go with a proven commodity.

  • Jeff Wright

    That’s a spicy meatball. I thought Arianespace…like the Olympics-was all about France still thinking it is a world power.

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