science

Vega flight VV01

Vega flight VV01 is a science topic covered in the lgStudy science library. This page brings together a partial reference excerpt, illustrations, worked examples, real-world applications and a short study plan, so you can understand Vega flight VV01 rather than just read about it. In short: Vega flight VV01 (called officially Vega qualification flight VV01) is the maiden flight of the Vega launcher. It occurred from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) on 13 February 2012 at 10:00:00 UTC.

Key takeaways

Vega flight VV01 belongs to science; place it in that map before memorising details.
Learn the definition first, then one example that makes the definition concrete.
Connect Vega flight VV01 to a quantity you can measure, compute or draw — that is where exam questions come from.
Reproduce the core statement of Vega flight VV01 from memory before moving on to harder problems.

Reference excerpt

Vega flight VV01 (called officially Vega qualification flight VV01) is the maiden flight of the Vega launcher. It occurred from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) on 13 February 2012 at 10:00:00 UTC.

Payload The maiden flight was a multi-payload mission that deployed 9 satellites (2 science satellites and 7 educational CubeSats) into space, with a total payload mass of about 680 kg (1,500 lb) including the satellites themselves (about 400 kg) and the satellite adapters and dispensers. The 3 CubeSat dispensers were capable of deploying up to 3 CubeSats each or 9 in total, however 7 only of the selected 9 were accepted for flight.

LARES

The LAser RElativity Satellite (LARES) was the primary payload of the maiden flight, and the first to be separated. It had a circular target orbit with an altitude of 1,450 km (900 mi) and an inclination of 69.5°. It consists in a sphere made of tungsten alloy with a mass of approximately 386 kg (851 lb) and a diameter of about 37.6 cm (14.8 in). Due to its unusually high mass density, the satellite had to be held and deployed by a special separation subsystem (SSEP).

ALMASat-1

The Alma Mater Satellite-1 (ALMASat-1) was the secondary payload of the flight, with a mass of 13.56 kg (29.9 lb) and a cubic shape with side length of about 30 cm (12 in). As such, both its orbit and adapter were constrained by LARES's. An anomaly during its separation into a targeted elliptical 345 x 1450 km altitude orbit at an inclination of 69.5° was detected a posteriori, and it is suspected that it might be due to the low voltage required by LARES and a thermal imbalance of its separation system (AD-SS). First signals of the spacecraft were received on 14 February 2012, however a few days later, an on-board failure occurred which eventually resulted in a contact loss.

e-st@r

The Educational SaTellite @ politecnico di toRino (e-st@r) was one of the 7 educational CubeSats onboard Vega's maiden flight, with approximately the same elliptical target orbit as ALMASat-1. The operations have been affected by unexpected tumbling of the CubeSat, which ceased operations in December 2012.

Goliat

Goliat was another one of the 7 educational CubeSats onboard Vega's maiden flight, and also had approximately the same elliptical target orbit as ALMASat-1. The satellite could not stabilise its attitude and its communications have been intermittent before contact was lost permanently after the last contact on 18 February 2012. It re-entered the atmosphere on 2 January 2015 and disintegrated.

MaSat-1

The Magyar Satellite-1 MaSat-1 was another one of the 7 educational CubeSats onboard Vega's maiden flight, and also had approximately the same elliptical target orbit as ALMASat-1. It reentered Earth's atmosphere on 9 January 2015, after almost 3 years of operations.

PW-Sat-1

PW-Sat-1 was another one of the 7 educational CubeSats onboard Vega's maiden flight, and also had approximately the same elliptical target orbit as ALMASat-1. It did not deploy its LEONIDAS tail as commanded in April and May 2012 for a planned re-entry in 2013. It turned silent on 23 December 2012 and finally reentered Earth's atmosphere on 28 October 2014.

ROBUSTA

The Radiation on Bipolar University Satellite Test Application (ROBUSTA) comprised another one of the 7 educational CubeSats onboard Vega's maiden flight that also had a target orbit similar to ALMASat-1's. The satellite emitted a weak signal at the beginning of the mission, but no further communication has been received since. Investigations identified a fabrication defect which prevents the CubeSat's batteries from being charged.

UniCubeSat-GG

UniCubeSat-GG was another one of the 7 educational CubeSats onboard Vega's maiden flight, and also had approximately the same elliptical target orbit as ALMASat-1. It emitted data for only 1 to 2 weeks after launch.

Xatcobeo

Xatcobeo was another one of the 7 educational CubeSats onboard Vega's maiden flight, and also had approximately the same elliptical target orbit as ALMASat-1. It also experienced unexpected tumbling.

Mission description

Launch date The successful Vega qualification flight took place on 13 February 2012 at 10:00:00 UTC from the ELV launch pad in Kourou, French Guiana. It was the first Arianespace launch of 2012, followed by 7 Ariane 5 and 2 Soyuz flights.

Orbit The mission was planned to last 1 hour and 21 minutes, placing the primary payload into its circular orbit at an altitude of about 1,450 km (900 mi) and an inclination of about 69.5° and the secondary payloads into corresponding elliptical orbits with a perigee of about 345 km.

References

Illustrations

Worked examples

Example 1 — a first encounter with Vega flight VV01

Start with the simplest possible case. Write down what Vega flight VV01 claims or describes in one sentence, then invent the smallest concrete situation in which that sentence is true. In science, the smallest case is usually a single object, a single equation or a single measurement. Check that every symbol or term in your sentence has a meaning in that case.

Example 2 — changing one variable

Take the situation from Example 1 and change exactly one quantity: double it, halve it, or set it to zero. Predict what should happen to Vega flight VV01 before you calculate. Comparing your prediction with the result is the fastest way to find out whether you understand the idea or only the words.

Example 3 — an exam-style question

Typical questions about Vega flight VV01 ask you to (a) state it precisely, (b) apply it to given data, and (c) explain a limitation. Practise writing all three answers in under five minutes; the third part is what separates a full-mark answer from an average one.

Applications of Vega flight VV01

In research: Vega flight VV01 appears in science research whenever the underlying quantities have to be modelled precisely. Papers usually cite it as a starting assumption and then explore where it breaks down.
In technology and industry: Engineering practice reuses Vega flight VV01 in design rules, simulations and safety margins. Knowing the idea lets you read a specification sheet and understand why the numbers look the way they do.
In the classroom: Vega flight VV01 is common in secondary-school and first-year university syllabi. It links to neighbouring topics 2012 in French Guiana, 2012 in spaceflight, Rocket launches in 2012, so understanding it makes those chapters shorter.
In everyday life: Look for Vega flight VV01 outside the textbook — in sport, cooking, traffic, electronics or the sky above you. An example you found yourself is remembered far longer than one you were given.

Ask Teacher Smith questions about this articleOpens your AI tutor with a question about “Vega flight VV01” →

Affiliate

Preply — study more efficiently by working with a personal tutor. 50% off.

How to study Vega flight VV01 in 20 minutes

Read the reference excerpt below once, without taking notes.
Close the page and write down what Vega flight VV01 means in your own words.
Compare your version with the excerpt and mark what you missed.
Work through the three examples above with pen and paper.
Explain Vega flight VV01 out loud to somebody else — or to Teacher Smith in the lgStudy chat.

Frequently asked questions

What is Vega flight VV01 in simple terms?

Vega flight VV01 (called officially Vega qualification flight VV01) is the maiden flight of the Vega launcher. It occurred from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) on 13 February 2012 at 10:00:00 UTC.

Why does Vega flight VV01 matter?

Because it connects several science ideas at once: it gives you a definition you can apply, a quantity you can calculate, and a way to check whether a result is plausible.

How should I study Vega flight VV01?

Read the excerpt, restate it from memory, then work through the examples and applications listed on this page. The five-step study plan above takes about twenty minutes.

What does this page cover?

It gives you a compact reference excerpt plus original lgStudy explanations, examples, applications and study material on Vega flight VV01.