Ariane 5 blasts off for the final time
After 27 years of dutiful service, Arianespace’s Ariane 5 rocket flew for the last time, departing Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, on July 5. The legendary rocket took part in some historic missions, including the Rosetta comet probe, the BepiColombo mission to Mercury, and the Webb Space Telescope. With the French-built rocket now retired, Europe finds itself starved for launch providers, as the successor rocket, Ariane 6, likely won’t fly until next year.
