ESA completed the second stage Vega-C rocket engine test

European Space Agency (ESA) has completed the Zefiro-40 solid rocket motor, the second stage of the Vega-C rocket. Manufacturer Avio conducted this test at its Salto Di Quirra test facility in Sardinia, Italy. The second stage engine is designed with an improved nozzle essential for Vega-C return-to-flight by the end of 2024.

The motor was installed on a horizontal test bench and fired the engine for 94 seconds. The post-test data shows that the engine performed as expected throughout the test period. The Zefiro-40 is a 7.5-meter tall rocket motor with more than 36 tonnes of solid propellant.

Avio will review the data from the first test and compare it with the second test in October. This will help the company to decide the Zefiro-40’s qualification for a test later this year.

The new tests come amid Vega is set to retire later this summer. This rocket was first launched in 2012 and completed 21 flights over its lifetime. Vega-C will succeed Vega with improved performance, increased payload capacity, and improved technical aspects.

This rocket will operate from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana and support new missions including return-to-Earth with ESA’s reusable Space Rider reentry vehicle. Among the latest enhancements, Vega-C has two new solid propulsion stages, an uprated upper stage, new fairings, and new ground infrastructure.

It is a single-body rocket with a 210 tonnes mass at liftoff. It can place 2300kg in a reference 700km-polar orbit. It can carry a mix of cargo shapes and sizes, ranging from CubeSats as small as one kilogram and a single large payload.

(source)