IXV ready for launch

On its first launch of the year, Europe’s Vega rocket will loft ESA’s unmanned spaceplane to test reentry technologies for future vehicles.

The launch campaign has resumed, aiming for a liftoff on 11 February from Kourou, French Guiana to release ESA’s Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle, IXV, into a suborbital trajectory. Batteries that were removed from IXV are being taken from cold storage, charged and reinstalled.

This mission will provide vital flight data for Europe to forge ahead in developing systems and advanced technologies for transportation systems of the future.

Pictured: Giorgio Tumino, ESA's IXV Programme Manager with Davide Nicolini, ESA Vega Operational Launch System Project Manager.