Vega

Vettore Europeo di Generazione Avanzata

Mission Profile

Vega (Vettore Europeo di Generazione Avanzata) is ESA's small orbital launch vehicle, a four-stage rocket combining three solid-propellant stages with a restartable liquid upper stage for flexible small satellite deployment. Standing 30 meters tall with a 137,000 kg liftoff mass and 1,500 kg to sun-synchronous orbit, it made its maiden flight on 13 February 2012 from Kourou. Vega filled the gap in Europe's launch vehicle portfolio between small rideshare payloads and the medium-class Soyuz, offering dedicated small satellite access to polar and SSO orbits.