Europe and Japan Step Up Push for Reusable Launchers

摘要

If everything goes to plan, 2021 will be the year of the Ariane 6's second flight, meaning launch service provider Arianespace will still be in the early transition phase from the Ariane 5. The first test flight of Callisto, a small reusable launcher demonstrator built by two of Europe's national space agencies and the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA), is also planned for 2021.The Ariane 6 is the expendable medium- to heavy-lift launcher Europe has designed to compete with SpaceX's lower-price satellite launches on the Falcon 9. With Callisto and a likely follow-on larger-scale demonstrator program underway, the Ariane 6 may begin its service life even as plans for a successor are being drawn. The French and German space agencies have started work with JAXA, without waiting for the European Space Agency's (ESA) framework to be ready. The move signals a sense of urgency.