CRISTAL-A
Vega-C, Avio S.p.A
Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV), Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana
Launch time
No earlier than
NET Q4 2027
Current date is a placeholder or rough estimation based on unreliable or interpreted sources.
How sure is this date?
The source gives quarter 4 precision. Launch plans can change.
Launch record updated by LL2
Feed checkedMission
CRISTAL-A on Vega-C. NET Q4 2027. Status: TBD. Launch site: Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV). Source: Launch Library 2.
First of two Copernicus Polar Ice and Snow Topography Altimeter (CRISTAL) satellites, carrying a dual-frequency radar altimeter along with a microwave radiometer to measure and monitor changes in sea-ice thickness, overlying snow depth and ice-sheet elevation.
- Mission type
- Earth Science
- Orbit
- Sun-Synchronous Orbit
Programmes: Copernicus
Launch context
Generated from source records
CRISTAL-A: Vega-C, operated by Avio S.p.A. Pad: Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV), Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana. Mission type: Earth Science; target orbit: Sun-Synchronous Orbit. Listed timing: NET Q4 2027. TBD means this is a provisional date. Provider: 2 orbital attempts in our records since 19 May 2026, including 2 in 2026 (UTC). Vehicle: 5/5 resolved orbital outcomes succeeded (100%) in our records since 29 Apr 2025. Pad: 5 orbital attempts in our records since 29 Apr 2025.
Partial historical coverage. Records snapshot: .
What these records cover
Partial coverage of stored records, not lifetime or worldwide totals. Counts use known orbital attempts with a source date at or before this snapshot and a status confirming liftoff or an outcome. Scheduled, upstream-missing, suborbital and unknown-orbit records are excluded. Source dates are NET estimates, not verified actual liftoff times.
The vehicle percentage is Success / (Success + Failure + Partial Failure). In Flight and Payload Deployed count as attempts but are excluded from that denominator. Figures describe the stored record at this snapshot, not the vehicle's flight number or a prediction of this launch's outcome.
Launch Library 2 record checked . Recorded timing does not establish actual liftoff; plans can change.
Launch data: The Space Devs (Launch Library 2)Launch timeline
No timeline has been provided by the source.
Slip history
Changes recorded by Space Right Now
No changes since we started tracking on .
Source updates from Launch Library 2 (1)
Announcements supplied by LL2 may predate our tracking. They are separate from changes observed by Space Right Now.
- LL2 update
Adding launch NET late 2027
Read the source update
Launch pad
Ariane Launch Area 1 (ELV)
Guiana Space Centre, French Guiana (GF)
Coordinates: 5.236, -52.775
View launch pad on a map