Ariane flight V88 was the failed maiden flight of the Arianespace Ariane 5 rocket, vehicle no. 501, on 4 June 1996. It carried the Cluster spacecraft, a constellation of four European Space Agency research satellites.
ESA quadrilateral mission insignia for Cluster Horizon 2000← SOHOHuygens →
Recovered support strut of the satellite structure
Ariane 5 is a retired European heavy-lift space launch vehicle developed and operated by Arianespace for the European Space Agency (ESA). It was launched from the Centre Spatial Guyanais (CSG) in French Guiana. It was used to deliver payloads into geostationary transfer orbit (GTO), low Earth orbit (LEO) or further into space. The launch vehicle had a streak of 82 consecutive successful launches between 9 April 2003 and 12 December 2017. Since 2014, Ariane 6, a direct successor system, is in development.
Ariane 5 flight VA-256 on the launch pad with the James Webb Space Telescope in December 2021
Vulcain engine
EPS Upper Stage used on Ariane 5ES
Belgian components produced for the Ariane 5 European heavy-lift launch vehicle explained