EU Agreed To Launch 700-kg Galileo Satellites On SpaceX Falcon 9 Rockets
On Tuesday, March 19, the European Union signed an agreement with the United States that will allow it to pay Elon Musk’s SpaceX to launch its satellites. The agreement is necessary because of long delays in the launch of the next generation of Europe’s own Ariane rocket system.
The launch of the first two spacecraft should take place in the second half of April. The next two will be sent into orbit at an altitude of 22 thousand km in July, writes POLITICO with reference to Thierry Breton, EU Commissioner for the Internal Market.
The EU was forced to turn to the services of an American company by the lack of progress in the creation of Ariane 6, which should have been put into operation four years ago. In addition, the European Space Agency (ESA) stopped cooperation with Roscosmos, which had previously launched its satellites using modified Soyuz rockets from the cosmodrome in French Guiana, after the start of the SVO.
The text of the security agreement clearly states that personnel sent by the EU or the European Space Agency must have access to “classified equipment and documentation” related to Galileo, and even says that the EU has the right to post guards to protect its equipment. In the event of a launch failure, the European Space Agency will receive permission to recover the debris, store the remains and send them back to Europe, according to the approved text.
