By akademiotoelektronik, 11/04/2022

Reusable launchers and manned flights: Europe in space is looking for the right orbit

Europe is powerlessly watching the monumental fundraising campaigns by American New Space start-ups (Rocket Lab, Virgin Orbit, Astra, etc.). The combined valuation of the dozen players that entered the Nasdaq in recent months reached $27 billion. As for the project for a sovereign constellation of telecom satellites launched by the European Commissioner for the Internal Market Thierry Breton, it is only at the preliminary study stage, while SpaceX has already placed 1,700 satellites of its Starlink project in orbit, and the start-up OneWeb, 348. "Europe is beginning to reinvest, but the effort is far from that of the United States, China or India", summarizes Arthur Sauzay, author of several reports on the question for the Montaigne Institute.

Read also100 billion valuation: Is SpaceX an overrated group?

Intra-European competition

To make matters worse, Europe must also come to terms with the resurgence of a certain spatial nationalism. Germany, under the leadership of the government coordinator for space affairs Thomas Jarzombek, is resolutely pushing the microlauncher projects of its start-ups Isar Aerospace or RFA. “Berlin absolutely wants its flag on a launcher, facing the Italian Vega rocket and an Ariane 6 felt to be too French, sums up an industrialist. For the moment, it is only in the segment of microlaunchers, but we must not to hide the face. Berlin wants to try its hand at developing larger launchers and establishing itself as a potential prime contractor for an Ariane 7." Germany even supports an improbable project for a floating launch pad in the North Sea: Economy Minister Peter Altmaier announced that the federal government would finance half of the feasibility study for the project… which would compete with the Kourou site .

^{SpaceX's Starship launcher being tested in Boca Chica, Texas. This giant rocket, completely reusable, is designed to serve the Moon and Mars. (SpaceX/Sp)}

Italy is not to be outdone: under the impetus of its industrialist Avio, it is pushing for a new version of Vega, Vega-E, which could encroach on the flowerbeds of Ariane 6. In a report published in 2019, the Senate estimated that nine institutional missions could be stolen by Vega-E from the European heavy launcher.

Even France seems to be converting to this intra-European competition. During the presentation of the France 2030 plan on October 12, President Macron set a clear objective for French industry: to develop a reusable mini-launcher by 2026. The latter should be based on the Themis demonstrator, equipped with the new low-cost engine Prometheus, which will begin its ground tests in the coming weeks on the ArianeGroup site in Vernon (Eure). “The 2026 target is obviously a response to Germany, translates a sector leader. The message is: do you want competition? Very well, we participate, and may the best win.”

^{Behind the untouchable United States, Europe seems to be on a par with China. But the Chinese figure should be taken with a grain of salt, for lack of a reliable source. (SOURCE: EUROCONSULT.)}

Satellite Leadership

Could space Europe succumb to these divisions? Industrialists want to be reassuring: despite the bickering, support for Ariane 6 is there. The European Space Agency (ESA) undertook this summer to order four Ariane 6 firings per year for institutional missions. "This commitment, which is inspired by the American model, will make it possible to cover fixed costs and to be competitive on the export market", swears Stéphane Israël. Ariane 6, if it is not reusable, still displays solid advantages. It will be 50% cheaper than Ariane 5, and its reignitable Vinci engine allows it to better meet the needs of constellations, the most dynamic market segment. "We are also working on developments that will further improve the versatility and competitiveness of Ariane 6, such as the new Astris stage, a carbon upper stage, or optimized powder boosters, says André-Hubert Roussel, CEO of Aria -neGroup. With these innovations, we can still achieve 20% competitiveness."

In the longer term, the side boosters could be equipped with the Prometheus engine, and therefore become reusable.

Europe also maintains good positions in the satellite segment. "Since the start of the year, Airbus and Thales Alenia Space have had a 42% market share by volume on order intake, compared to 25% for American competitors", underlines Maxime Puteaux, analyst at Euroconsult. During the visit of Challenges in mid-September, the Cannes factory of Thales Alenia Space was full as an egg, with two giant satellites being assembled, SES-17 (launched since by Ariane 5) and Konnect VHTS . "These satellites display unique performances in the world, assured Marc-Henri Serre, boss of the telecoms activity. We have no complex to have in the face of competition."

Lack of public funds

But if it wants to remain a leading player in the global race, the Old Continent will have to accelerate further. "Europe has an excellent industrial fabric and solid technological skills, but public investment remains insufficient compared to that of competitors, believes Xavier Pasco, director of the Foundation for Strategic Research (FRS), specialist in space. However, this is essential to prime the pump, as we can see with the weight of NASA and the Pentagon in orders for start-ups in the American New Space."

Read alsoIsar Aerospace, future European New Space champion?

The next ESA ministerial conference, scheduled for the end of 2022, therefore promises to be decisive. "Faced with China and the United States, which are investing huge amounts, Europe cannot afford to be divided," said Daniel Metzler, founder of the German start-up Isar Aerospace, which is developing the Spectrum microlauncher. must both accelerate investments and support European New Space players, for example with a number of annual launches ordered by ESA, the Commission and the Member States."

Manned capsule project

Many voices are also raised to demand a major manned flight program, which would allow Europe to join the very exclusive club of powers capable of sending humans into space (United States, China, Russia).

“Being absent from the segment is not acceptable, I will discuss it with the Member States in the coming months”, assured ESA boss Josef Aschbacher on October 27 at the IAC (International Astronautical Congress) in Dubai. The necessary investment, between 2.5 and 5 billion dollars over seven years from an industrial source, appears sustainable for the ESA, whose budget is 7.5 billion dollars.

The technical skills are also there: Airbus is already developing an essential part of NASA's Orion manned capsule, the service module. Thales built half of the pressurized part of the International Space Station. As for ArianeGroup, it sent the ESA a proposal for a manned capsule, which would be launched by Ariane 6 by 2030. there is a European political will", assures the boss of Cnes Philippe Baptiste. In fact, if France appears interested in the project, Germany has so far not shown overwhelming enthusiasm.