ARIANE 5 (5G, 5G+, 5GS, 5ES, 5ECA) - Vehicle use: Satellite, ATV (2008-2014)
European Space Agency orbital launch vehicle, operated by Arianespace. The Ariane 5 launcher consists of the main cryogenic stage, two solid boosters, and an upper stage. It is capable of launching 20,000 kg to low Earth orbit and more than 10,000 kg to geosynchronous transfer orbits. Ariane 5 has a different architecture than the previous Ariane 1-4. It incorporates a high level of redundancy in its electrical and computer systems for greater reliability and uses more standardized components than its predecessors.
source: http://www.arianespace.com/vehicle/ariane-5/
Variant
All variants
5G
5G+
5GS
5ES
5ECA
5ECA+
Launches
109
16
3
6
8
72
4
Failures
5
3
0
0
0
2
0
Realized
0.95
0.81
1.00
1.00
1.00
0.97
1.00
Predicted
0.95
0.78
0.80
0.88
0.90
0.96
0.83
50
51
53
52
55
56
54
57
58
59
60
61
62
64
63
65
67
66
69
68
71
72
70
73
74
75
76
79
77
78
81
80
83
82
85
84
86
87
88
89
90
91
92
93
95
94
96
97
99
98
01
00
02
03
04
05
06
07
09
08
11
10
13
12
15
14
17
16
18
19
20
21
22
23
24
6/4/1996 - Ariane 5G
SOFTWARE ERROR RESULTS IN LOSS OF ATTITUDE CONTROL DURING ASCENT
1st Ariane 5 launch
1st planned qualification test flight for the Ariane 5G launch vehicle
At approximately 40 seconds into flight, at an altitude of approximately 3,700 meters, the launch vehicle veered off its intended flight path and began to break up due to high aerodynamic loads, triggering self-destruction of the launcher. Post-flight analysis revealed that the flight control system's inertial reference system failed at around 36.7 seconds after main engine ignition, due to a systematic software design error caused by the reuse of Ariane 4 launch vehicle software which proved incompatible with Ariane 5 fight parameters. The Ariane 5 program did not include adequate analysis and testing of the inertial reference system and integrated flight control system, which could have identified the software design error prior to flight. The software design was modified for subsequent flights.
SOURCES:
Ariane 5 Flight 501 Failure Report by the Inquiry Board
Space Launch Report Ariane 5 Data Sheet
VIDEO:
Ariane 5 Rocket Launch Explosion
10/30/1997 - Ariane 5G
PREMATURE CORE STAGE ENGINE SHUTDOWN DUE TO EXCESSIVE ROLL RATE DURING ASCENT
2nd Ariane 5G launch
2nd planned qualification test flight for the Ariane 5G launch vehicle
The core stage experienced excessive roll torque (900 Nm) during powered flight, resulting in the shutdown of the core stage Vulcain engine 10-20 seconds early, causing the payload to be placed in a lower than planned orbit. Subsequent analysis and ground testing of the Vulcain engine identified the probable cause as "roughness of the internal surface of the Vulcain engine divergent causing the boundary layer of the main jet to spiral." The Vulcain engine turbine exhaust was modified/repositioned to counter the roll torque on subsequent flights.
SOURCES:
European Space Agency Press Release Number 14-1998
Space Launch Report Ariane 5 Data Sheet
7/12/2001 - Ariane 5G
UPPER STAGE ENGINE LOW THRUST AND PREMATURE SHUTDOWN
10th Ariane 5G launch
A transient disturbance was observed following the ignition of the upper stage Aestus engine (Astrium Storable Propellant Stage), and the upper stage only produced 80% of its expected thrust during operation. The single Aestus upper stage engine then experienced a premature shutdown 900 seconds into its originally planned 980-second burn (the engine should have actually burned longer than originally planned due to lower than expected thrust). The cause was determined to be combustion instability at Aestus ignition, which led to low thrust and premature depletion of nitrogen tetroxide or monomethylhydrazine propellant. The combustion instability at Aestus engine ignition was attributed to a dynamic hydraulic coupling between the upper stage's propellant feed system and the engine's combustion chamber internal circuits. A propellant leak and water vapour in the propellant lines may have caused the combustion instability. Although the Ariane 5 core stage performance was nominal, the upper stage engine anomaly left the payload in a significantly lower than planned orbit.
SOURCES:
ESA Press Release - Flight 142 Inquiry Findings
Space Launch Report Ariane 5 Data Sheet
Arianespace Flight 142: Inquiry Board Report and Action Plan
Chronology of Launch Failures from 1990
1/25/2018 - Ariane 5G
VEHICLE TRAJECTORY ERROR
35th Ariane 5G launch
Incorrect azimuth values in the flight software resulted in the vehicle trajectory being off course, which caused the payload to be placed in a slightly lower than planned orbit and at the wrong inclination.
SOURCES:
0.84
0.81
0.70
0.67
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.00
0.89
0.87
0.76
0.74
0.50
0.50
0.87
0.84
0.71
0.69
0.33
0.40
0.80
0.77
0.75
0.70
0.96
0.95
0.96
0.95
0.95
0.94
0.94
0.93
0.94
0.94
0.93
0.91
0.95
0.94
0.93
0.92
0.94
0.93
0.92
0.90
0.90
0.89
0.95
0.94
0.95
0.95
Realized Rate
Predicted Rate