The action plan to bring Arianespace’s Ariane 5 heavy-lift launcher back to
flight status is proceeding as planned.
In Germany, the third series of Aestus test firings was conducted on August
28 to evaluate the engine’s ignition process. This test series went well,
and “soft” ignition conditions were reproduced.
Work on modeling the conditions inside Aestus during engine ignition also is
moving ahead, with the merging of hydraulic and combustion models now
underway.
A first validation of the dynamic model created with data from the initial
test firings showed results that were very representative of actual
conditions seen during the third test firing series.
