The new #Ariane 6 rocket, which is running four years late ⏳ and still hasn't flown, should be the last #LaunchVehicle developed by #ESA, which will launch a competition of #launchers without weight class limitations. The field of startup launch companies in #Europe 🇪🇺 includes German 🇩🇪 firms like #HyImpulse, #RocketFactory Augsburg, and #IsarAerospace; British 🇬🇧 companies such as #Skyrora and #Orbex; and Spain's 🇪🇸 #PLDSpace. #ESA will use around 75 million euros 💰 to pay for the early stages of the #cargo 📦 challenge, which #Aschbacher expects will result in three companies competing with one another https://arstechnica.com/space/2023/11/after-the-sting-of-ariane-6-europe-finally-embraces-commercial-rockets/
Which #rocket 🚀 will first deliver #payload 🛰️ to #LEO ?
• #Ariane design concept 📆 2014 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ariane_6
• #H3 design concept 📆 2015 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/H3_(rocket)
• #Starship design concept 📆 2018 https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/SpaceX_Starship#Early_design_concepts_(2012%E2%80%932019)
Options: (choose one)
@spaceflight I hope it will be Ariane, this is the rocket I am rooting for. Go ESA <3