The eighth flight of Europe’s rocket Ariane 6 will have a bigger boost: the P120C solid-propellant rocket motor, used as Ariane 6 booster so far, has been upgraded. The new P160C flying on Ariane 6 flight VA269 offers 10% more performance to orbit.

P160C was developed by Europropulsion under contract from ArianeGroup and Avio. Just like P120C, P160C comes in three main parts, its structure is made in Italy, the rocket engine nozzle in France and the igniter in Norway.

After being shipped to Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, the P160C boosters are loaded with 14 tonnes more fuel

Week in images: 01-05 June 2026

Discover our week through the lens

ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher briefed media representatives and discussed Europe's priorities in space, exploration, resilience and the future of the European space sector. 

The World Settlement Footprint (WSF) Tracker, and its dedicated online platform, have been officially released at an event at the World Bank headquarters in Washington DC.

The European Space Agency has awarded the contract to lead the development and build for two Copernicus Sentinel-1 Next Generation satellites to Thales Alenia Space. Building on the success of the current Sentinel-1 mission, the next-generation satellites will ensure the long-term continuity of Europe’s radar Earth observation capabilities while delivering enhanced performance.

The European Space Agency’s (ESA) Science Programme Committee has adopted the Arrakihs mission. Planned for launch by the end of 2030, Arrakihs will capture the faint light from nearby galaxy haloes. By seeing the unseen, Arrakihs will dig up cosmic history and reveal how galaxies like our own form and evolve.  

The European Space Agency (ESA) inaugurated its participation at ILA Berlin International Airshow 2026 with a day rich in high-level meetings, public events and strategic milestones, highlighting Europe's determination to strengthen its role in space. From in-space operations and services to Earth observation and planetary defence, 'Day 1 at ILA' showcased how ESA is working with its Member States, partners and industry to help shape Europe's future.

Scenes from a hot-fire test campaign on the Teprel-C engine developed by Spain’s PLD Space.  

Teprel‑C is PLD Space’s fourth version of the Teprel engine family, after the demo, A, and B version. It features a unique design developed for their Miura-5 rocket. The engine is optimised for serial production and built in‑house, from design and manufacturing to integration. 

The test-firing in this video focused on throttle capabilities that will allow Miura 5’s first stage to control itself on reentry, eventually so it can fire up after liftoff and touch down softly for landing. 

These test campaigns were developed in

On 9 June, NASA announced the crew for the Artemis III mission, which includes ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano as pilot. ESA is also providing its third European Service Module for this crewed test flight in Earth orbit, which will be key for the mission’s objective to test rendezvous and docking capabilities ahead of future lunar landing missions. Along with Luca, three NASA astronauts will fly on this mission: commander Randy Bresnik and lander specialists Frank Rubio and Andre Douglas. The crew now begins a rigorous training schedule to learn the Orion spacecraft systems, as well