Analysis of information sources in references of the Wikipedia article "Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle" in English language version.
The contract is valued at 39.4 million euros to cover preliminary IXV work for 18 months, Fabrizi said.
The Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle (IXV), under ESA's Future Launchers Preparatory Programme (FLPP), is the step forward from the successful Atmospheric Reentry Demonstrator flight in 1998, establishing Europe's role in this field.
It will navigate through the atmosphere within its reentry corridor before descending, slowed by a multistage parachute, for a safe splashdown in the Pacific Ocean some 100 minutes after liftoff.
ESA's Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle flew a flawless reentry and splashed down in the Pacific Ocean just west of the Galapagos islands.
Yesterday, the ship and crew aiming to recover Europe's unmanned IXV spacecraft in November had a practice run off the coast of Tuscany, Italy.
The moment when ESA's IXV Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle is removed from its protective container, safely inside the cleanroom environment of the Agency's Technical Centre.
The launch of ESA's IXV Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle on Europe's new Vega rocket is now in detailed planning, a major step towards the craft's flight in 2014.
it will fly the experimental hypersonic phase over the Pacific Ocean, descend by parachute and land in the ocean to await recovery and analysis.
The launch, using Europe's new Vega light launcher, is scheduled for October 2014.
In 2013, a Vega rocket will carry ESA's Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle into space.
The contract is valued at 39.4 million euros to cover preliminary IXV work for 18 months, Fabrizi said.