http://cellar.org/pictures/eurorocket.jpg

Must be space week here; I have a few other space-related pictures that are pretty cool. This is a European rocket taking off, and I think it's pretty cool because it's so different-looking. We've seen so many images of American rockets and so rarely see other countries' rockets.

More interesting is that these French rockets are the world leaders in commercial satellite launches - not America.

Agreed- the US has invested so much time, effort, and pride in the Space Shuttle in the past 30 years that it has fallen behind the ESA in the development of inexpensive, decent disposable rockets to put commercial sattelites into orbit.

I believe they still use a Titan variant at times,
Z

Its pretty sad, isn't it. I'm reading Ken MacCleods "The Cassini Division" right now. Privitized space anyone?

The European rockets are faster and more skilled than the American rockets. They are also better passers. But you'd better have a few American rockets on every team as they play more physical.

BTW, This Ariane 5 orbited Oscar-40...
 

A quite sophisticated amateur radio satellite. After some nasty technical problems it may be nearly ready for commissioning. It is at least *functioning*, and I've received and decoded telemetry from it. I also have a number of other contacts logged that were made though orbiting amateur radio satellites.