Ariel passes its design review and moves into construction

European Space Agency/Ariel

Ariel's spacecraft design passed its preliminary design review after a 19-month phase, moving the mission from drawing board to construction. Airbus in Toulouse can now build a structural model for launch and space-environment tests and an avionics model for electronics and software. The payload had already passed its own review in May 2023.

• Next comes the critical design review, then the flight model.
• The payload includes a cryogenic telescope, the AIRS spectrometer, a guidance system and a cryocooler.
• NASA and Canada's space agency contribute to the payload.