Cluster -ESA's mission to study space weather - suffered a major setback in in 1996, when the four spacecraft were destroyed in the unsuccessful first launch of Ariane 5. Three years on, the Cluster satellites are once again ready for flight into orbit, and will be launched using two Russian Soyuz rockets in mid 2000.
This index covers background material on the Cluster mission, and is arranged as follows: 3-D graphics Cluster mission [including animation of the Earth's magnetic field], gvs' preparation of four Cluster 2 satellites, final assembly/ integration work on one Cluster 2 spacecraft, Soyuz launch from the Baikonur cosmodrome, presentation Cluster 1 from 1995 [English V/O, Cluster 1 development and integration graphics, images Ariane 501 failure and recovery of Cluster debris, Ariane 501 post-failure conference, graphic-annotated explanation of failure.
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