Closing the fairing for the first flight of Ariane 6 at the encapsulation hall in Europe's Spaceport, French Guiana, 6 June 2024.

This fairing for Ariane 6 will ensure the cargo is kept at a nice ambient temperature and humidity while also protecting it from the elements. It also provides a sleek aerodynamic shape to help Ariane 6 overcome the atmosphere as it thunders upwards to space. It is 5.4 m wide and 14 m tall and adapted to carry the widest array of space missions.

The fairing consists of two huge half-shells, made in one piece from carbon-glass fibre composite which is ‘cured’ in an industrial oven, reducing cost and speeding up production. Fewer parts allow for horizontal as well as vertical assembly of the closed fairing and the launch vehicle, which is particularly important for Ariane 6.

Ariane 6 is Europe’s new heavy lift launch vehicle replacing its extremely successful predecessor, Ariane 5. Modular and agile, Ariane 6 has a reignitable upper stage allowing it to launch multiple missions on different orbits on a single flight.