Ariane is a three-stage launcher with a total height of 47.4 m and weighing 208 t at lift-off, 90 percent of the mass being constituted by propellant. The structures and the payload account for 9 percent and 1 percent of the total weight, respectively. Optimization of the propellant masses of each stage and the general dimensions of the vehicle led to different diameters being adopted for the first stage and for the two upper stages. However, adoption of a bulb-shaped fairing provides sufficient usable volume to house large satellites. The only advanced propulsion technology employed is that of the third stage, where use of liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen allows the requisite performance to be obtained without unduly increasing vehicle dimensions.
Ariane Launcher and Its Progress
1978
12 pages
Report
Keine Angabe
Englisch
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