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A European rocket delivered nearly a billion dollars’ worth of satellites to
the wrong address last week. The Ariane 5 launcher deposited them in an orbit
more than 18,000 kilometres lower than planned, possibly because of a fuel leak.
Engineers hope that the $850 million Artemis, an experimental
communications satellite from the European Space Agency, can get to its intended
orbit with its ion propulsion thrusters, which require less fuel than normal
thrusters. “The status of the satellite is excellent,” said one representative
at a press conference on Friday. The Japanese Bsat-2B, which was also on board,
has only…