Vega Flight VV16 postponed until August

Due to the persistence of exceptionally unfavorable winds at altitude over the Guiana Space Center, Vega Flight VV16 - originally scheduled for June 18, 2020 - was repeatedly postponed, despite full availability the launcher and the 53 satellites on this Small Spacecraft Mission Service (SSMS) mission. With no improvement in the weather situation expected during the short term, Arianespace has decided to postpone Flight VV16 until August 17, 2020, when the forecast is expected to be more favorable based on modeling of the winds. The interim period will be used to recharge batteries of the launcher and the satellites, under all the required safety conditions. Despite this delay, Arianespace is maintaining the target of performing three Vega launches during 2020. Arianespace's next confirmed launch is Flight VA253, planned for July 28. This Ariane 5 mission to geostationary transfer orbit will be performed on behalf of the following customers: Intelsat (with the Galaxy 30 and MEV-2 payloads), and B-SAT (with BSAT-4b). In the exceptional context of the COVID-19 crisis, Arianespace was prepared to launch the Flight VV16 mission as soon as possible after the interruption of launch campaigns at the Guiana Space Center, which was caused by the epidemic. The mobilization of Arianespace and its partners, in particular Avio (industrial prime contractor for the Vega launcher), the French CNES space agency and the European Space Agency, made it possible to envisage this launch as of June 18, 2020. Unfortunately, due to exceptionally unfavorable winds at altitude for this time of year, the launch was rescheduled several times through Sunday, June 28.

Without a foreseeable improvement in the meteorological situation to allow an authorization of the northward launch toward polar orbit in accordance with range safety rules, Arianespace decided to reschedule the next SSMS mission launch attempt for August 17. At this date, the wind forecasts - based on models observed during several years - are more favorable.

The time that is now available will be used to restore the readiness of the launcher and the SSMS mission's 53 satellites in the context of operations carried out with batteries on the launcher in the Vega Launch Zone; and with batteries on the satellites, conducted in the launch site's payload preparation facilities.

The launch planning for Ariane 5's Flight VA253 - to be performed for operators Intelsat and B-SAT - was confirmed on July 28. The two Intelsat satellites arrived at the Spaceport in French Guiana on Saturday, June 27. Arrival of the BSAT-4b satellite is expected on July 1st.

The availability of this launch - with its eastward trajectory towards geostationary orbit - is not affected by the high-altitude winds currently observed above the Guiana Space Center in relation to the range safety rules. Therefore, a sustained level of activity continues at the Spaceport despite the health crisis that is particularly affecting French Guiana and the American continent.

"In the context of the COVID-19 crisis, which was as exceptional as it was difficult, Arianespace and its partners - especially Avio, ESA and CNES - mobilized in an absolutely remarkable way in seizing every opportunity to launch the Flight VV16 mission," confirmed Stephane Israel, Arianespace's Chief Executive Officer.

"This mobilization made it possible to carry out the Vega campaign from end to end, and to ensure the availability of both the launcher and the SSMS mission's 53 satellites.

Unfortunately, the persistence of exceptionally unfavorable winds at altitude in relation to the safety rules forces us to reposition this mission to August 17. We understand the impatience of our 21 customers, and we share it; we will now devote all our energy to ensuring the success of the 16th Vega flight for this emblematic mission as quickly as possible."

Flight VV16 is the first European rideshare mission in the framework of the Small Spacecraft Mission Service. Proposed as part of Arianespace's launch catalog offerings, SSMS is a European project.

With funding from ESA, the SSMS dispenser structure (on which the satellite payloads are integrated) was developed by Colleferro, Italy-based Avio - which also is the Vega launcher's industrial prime contractor. The structure was manufactured by the Czech company, SAB Aerospace. The European Union also contributed to the funding of the Flight VV16 demonstration mission.

The Vega launcher remains available for launch at any time when the required safety conditions are met.

Despite the delay in Vega Flight VV16, Arianespace continues to maintain its target of three Vega launches in 2020.

Space Mission Launches that will Carry Experiment Aimed at Solving Antibiotic Resistance

Israel's Sheba Medical Center, Tel HaShomer will make history on June 18 as one of the world's first hospitals to launch a bio-medical experiment in space. To help solve the worsening global problem of bacterial resistance to antibiotics, on this space mission Sheba will test its theory that microgravity in space affects antibiotic resistance acquisition by bacteria. The success of this experiment will help to understand the risks of infectious diseases in humans traveling to space and has the potential to find new approaches to fight the growing threat of antimicrobial resistance infections, which are responsible for the death of 700,000 people annually worldwide. The imminent need for an effective solution was made clear in a 2019 United Nations report estimating that globally, 10 million people may lose their lives by 2050 due to infections resistant to antibiotics. Moreover, the reported overuse of antibiotics during the COVID-19 pandemic has further contributed to the mounting resistance to antibiotics on a global scale. This resistance is expected to pose a more daunting threat in the long-run than the coronavirus itself. The future of the pharmaceutical industry could also rest on the success of Sheba's space experiment. This multi-billion-dollar industry is not sustainable long-term if the antibiotics it generates are no longer effective. On June 18 at 9:51PM EST, Arianespace will launch the Flight VV16 mission with Vega launcher's "ride-share" configuration, the Small Spacecraft Mission Service (SSMS) from the Spaceport in French Guiana. The mission will include 53 micro- and nanosatellites for 21 customers spanning Earth observation, telecommunications, science, technology and education.

Sheba's experiment, which will follow after the acquisition of resistance by E. coli bacteria, is facilitated through SpacePharma's microsatellite lab in conjunction with the European Space Agency, Israel Space Agency and Italian Space Agency. Underwriting is provided by the Italian Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Israel's Ministry of Science and Technology.

According to Prof. Ohad Gal-Mor, Head of the Infectious Diseases Research Laboratory at Sheba Medical Center, Tel HaShomer, data suggest that there is a significant overuse and misuse of antibiotics clinically, and even more so in agriculture. A major concern is the lack of regulation on veterinary and agricultural use of antibiotics. While the problem is more severe in developing countries, it also impacts developed countries.

It is precisely these problems that are the driving force behind Sheba Medical Center's innovative quest to outer space in search of innovative solutions.

"At Sheba Medical Center, we already have preliminary data suggesting that microgravity significantly affects antibiotic resistance acquisition from experiments we performed on the ground using a special device that mimics microgravity conditions to some extent," stated Prof. Gal-Mor.

"Now we are able to repeat these results under 'real' microgravity conditions and see how the conditions in space change this important and universal process. If we understand why microgravity inhibits conjugation, we hope to be able to develop new approaches to prevent this phenomenon in the hospital clinic and beyond."

"From our research, we understand that the most efficient mechanisms of antibiotic resistance acquisition in bacteria are horizontal gene transfer by means of conjugation, i.e. the transfer of resistance plasmids DNA between bacteria (also known as 'bacterial sex')," continued Prof. Gal-Mor.

"In our lab, we aim to understand and identify environmental, physiological and chemical signals controlling this process. In addition to the preliminary data showing that microgravity inhibits this process, we isolated a natural compound, found in the digestive system that also inhibits conjugation. Understanding how microgravity and other environmental conditions affect conjugation will go a long way toward helping us develop new treatments and approaches to reduce antibiotic resistance acquisition by bacteria."

The results of this experiment are not far off. Data will flow during the few weeks-long mission-analysis and conclusions are expected within one to two months. This project is done in collaboration with Prof. Raffaele Zarrilli and the graduate student Eliana Pia Esposito from the University "Federico II" of Napoli and Bar Piscon and Prof. Galia Rahav from the Sheba group.