Today, on April 29, at 04:50 Kyiv time, the 16th successful launch of light class Vega launch vehicle took place from the Kourou cosmodrome in French Guiana.
As part of the VV18 mission, a Pleiades Neo 3 spacecraft was launched for the Airbus Defense and Space Aerospace Corporation by launch vehicle. The weight of the satellite is about 750 kg.
The Pleiades Neo satellite is designed to monitor the Earth’s surface. It will allow you to take ultra-high resolution images up to 30 cm per pixel. The spacecraft is the first in a group of four Pleiades Neo satellites to be launched into orbit at the request of Airbus Defense and Space.
Also, as part of the European Space Agency’s Small Spacecraft Mission Service (SSMS) program, five more microsatellites have been launched to monitor the Earth and retransmit the communication.
For reference. YUZHMASH has been involved in the creation of the Vega launch vehicle since 2004. For this project, YUZHMASH produces a liquid rocket engine RD-843, which provides the generation of thrust and flight control of the 4th stage of the launch vehicle.
