europeanspaceagency posted a photo:

At 16:45 GMT/17:45 CET the first Ariane 6 rocket with four boosters lifted off from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana on 12 February, taking 32 Amazon Leo satellites to orbit.

This is Ariane 6’s most powerful version yet. The new three-stage European rocket can be adapted according to each mission with either two or four boosters as well as the length of the fairing – the nosecone that splits vertically in two. This launch was the sixth Ariane 6 flight, the first to fly with four boosters and also the first with the long fairing.

Ariane 6 in its four-booster configuration, known as Ariane 64, doubles the rocket’s performance compared to the two-booster version that has flown five times including the inaugural flight in 2024. The P120C boosters used by Ariane 6 are one of the most powerful one-piece motors in production in the world. Flying with four boosters takes Ariane 6 to a whole new class of rockets. With the extra thrust from two more boosters Ariane 6 can take around 21.6 tonnes to low Earth orbit, more than double the 10.3 tonnes it could bring to orbit with just two boosters.

Credits: ESA–M. Pédoussaut

europeanspaceagency posted a photo:

ESA medical doctor Sarah Gaier, member of the DC22 winterover crew, tests water samples from the Grey Water Treatment Unit (GWTU) at the Franco-Italian Concordia research station in Antarctica.

Located on an icy plateau at an altitude of 3200 metres in Antarctica, Concordia is one of the most isolated research facilities on Earth. During the winter, a small crew is cut off from the rest of the world for almost nine months, enduring extreme cold, prolonged isolation and near-constant darkness.

In such conditions, careful water management is essential. Built by the French company Firmus for ESA and the French space agency CNES, the GWTU system was installed at Concordia in 2005 and recycles up to 85% of the station's wastewater. This includes water from showers, laundry and drinking water fountains. Even part of the station's black water, or toilet water, can be recovered by converting as much of it as possible into grey water.

The recycling process involves several treatment stages. Water passes through a ceramic honeycomb filter, followed by a pair of membranes, then additional filtration and ultraviolet radiation eliminate any remaining bacteria and impurities. The system reuses the recycled water for technical and hygiene purposes, while it produces drinking water separately by melting clean, unpolluted snow.

ESA medical doctors at Concordia play a key role in maintaining this system. Alongside their research supporting future human space exploration, they regularly analyse water samples taken at different points in the recycling process. Tests measure parameters such as ammonium and phosphate levels, conductivity, acidity and bacterial content. During the busy summer season, when the station population can increase to around 80 people, the medical doctor monitors the water quality more frequently.

Concordia is operated by the French and Italian Antarctic research programmes, IPEV and PNRA, whose support has been essential to the recycling system's long-term validation in this extreme environment. The system has now also been used to support remote communities on Earth and even recycle water at the French tennis tournament Roland Garros. The proven technology could one day help sustain astronauts during the long journey to Mars.

Credits: ESA/IPEV/PNRA/S. Gaier

europeanspaceagency posted a photo:

Ariane 6 with four boosters on the launch pad at Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana, ready for liftoff of flight VA267, 12 February 2026.

This launch was the first to fly with four boosters, doubling liftoff thrust for the launcher, and saw Ariane 6 take 32 satellites for Amazon’s Leo constellation to orbit. The satellites are housed under the 20-m long fairing – the nose-cone that splits into two vertically after launch. The fairing protects the satellites from the elements and provides an aerodynamic shape as Ariane 6 will rocket into space. These indispensable launcher parts come in two variants, 20 or 14 metres tall, to accommodate passengers of various sizes – this launch will be the first to use the 20-m tall version. The larger fairing type weighs in at 2.6 tonnes, the smaller 1.8 tonnes, and both match the rocket’s diameter of 5.4 metres. Each shell of the fairing is manufactured in one piece from carbon fibre material and cured in an industrial oven to solidify into its final shape and form.

Ariane 6 launcher elements are manufactured in mainland Europe and then transported by ship and then trucks to Europe’s Spaceport.

The Upper Composite Trailer that takes the payload in its fairing to the launch pad is 6 m wide and 26 m long. This trailer is as large as a tennis court and has two driver cabins – instead of “reversing” the driver can jump out and walk to the other side to drive in the opposite direction. At 180 tonnes it has 32 wheels and three generators for power.

The four boosters used on this flight are connected to the central core on the launch pad. The booster structures are produced in Italy and then filled with solid propellant at Europe’s Spaceport at their booster finishing facility. Ariane 6 flight VA267 will be the first flight to use four boosters to get to orbit. Each P120C solid rocket booster is 13.5 m long and 3.4 m in diameter. Filled with about 142 tonnes of solid propellant, they provide around 4500 kN of maximum thrust. Working together the boosters will provide the majority of the thrust during Ariane 6’s launch to get it off the launch pad.

The mobile building surrounding Ariane 6 is a 90-metre-high metallic structure that rolls away once assembly is complete to allow Ariane 6 a clear view of the sky and space. The building has platforms for technicians to further assemble Ariane 6 while also protecting the rocket until it is ready for launch.

Ariane 6 is Europe’s newest heavy-lift rocket, designed to provide great power and flexibility at a lower cost than its predecessors. The rocket provides Europe with greater efficiency and an ensures access to space for the benefits of humankind, allowing for all types of missions from exploration to navigation, science and communications.

Credits: ESA–M. Pédoussaut

The Track is a documentary film about a group of athletes training in post-war Bosnia to make the Olympics in luge.

The Track is a coming-of-age journey of three friends chasing their improbable Olympic dreams in post-war Bosnia. Training on a crumbling track left behind from the 1984 Sarajevo Winter Olympics, the boys are guided by their devoted coach Senad, whose fight to rebuild the neglected track mirrors his determination to create a future for his athletes in a country facing one of the highest youth unemployment rates in Europe.

Filmed over five transformative years, The Track captures an intimate and deeply human coming-of-age story set against the backdrop of a nation still recovering from the scars of war, political corruption, and rising nationalism. As the boys balance Olympic ambition with the pull of street life, heartbreak, and survival, their paths begin to diverge, revealing the stark realities young people face in modern Bosnia.

You can check the website for online and IRL showings; it’s on Amazon Prime in the US.

Tags: Bosnia · luge · movies · Olympic Games · sports · The Track · trailers · video · war

MILAAN (ANP) - Shorttracker Jens van 't Wout heeft zich bij de Olympische Spelen gekwalificeerd voor de halve finale van de 1000 meter. De 24-jarige Nederlander, die in Milaan op alle individuele afstanden in actie komt, eindigde in de vierde en laatste kwartfinale nipt als eerste. De Zuid-Koreaan Jongun Rim werd tweede en plaatste zich daarmee ook.

Vier jaar terug slaagde Van 't Wout er in Beijing niet in door te dringen tot de olympische kwartfinale op de kilometer. De in Laren geboren shorttracker werd toen in de voorrondes derde in zijn heat en was daarmee uitgeschakeld.

Teun Boer mag later op donderdag ook terugkomen voor de halve finale. De Nijmegenaar, die voor het eerst meedoet aan de Spelen, eindigde in de eerste kwartfinale als vierde. Boer werd aan het deelnemersveld voor de volgende ronde toegevoegd omdat Daeheon Hwang hem had gehinderd. De Zuid-Koreaan werd gediskwalificeerd.

Diskwalificatie Italië

De 1000 meter is de enige afstand op deze Spelen waar Nederland twee in plaats van drie startbewijzen heeft.

Tot onvrede van het thuispubliek werd Pietro Sighel uitgeschakeld. De Italiaan kreeg van de wedstrijdleiding een straf (penalty) toegekend. Een straf heeft diskwalificatie tot gevolg.

SAN FRANCISCO (ANP/BLOOMBERG) - AI-bedrijf Anthropic heeft bij een nieuwe financieringsronde 30 miljard dollar opgehaald, waarbij de onderneming een waardering werd toegekend van 380 miljard dollar. Dat maakte Anthropic donderdag bekend. Met het geld wil het Amerikaanse bedrijf verdere investeringen doen in de concurrentiestrijd met rivalen als ChatGPT-moeder OpenAI.

De financieringsronde voor het in San Francisco gevestigde Anthropic werd geleid door het Singaporese staatsinvesteringsfonds GIC en beleggingsbedrijf Coatue Management, samen met andere investeerders. Bij een financieringsronde van Anthropic in september werd nog 13 miljard dollar opgehaald. Toen werd Anthropic gewaardeerd op 183 miljard dollar.

Anthropic heeft de chatbot Claude. Het bedrijf werd in 2021 opgericht door voormalige werknemers van OpenAI.

MILAAN (ANP) - Shorttrackster Xandra Velzeboer is weer een stap dichter bij een olympische medaille op de 500 meter gekomen. De Nederlandse plaatste zich donderdag in Milaan op overtuigende wijze voor de finale. Velzeboer noteerde met 41,399 een wereldrecord.

Selma Poutsma finishte als derde en mag met Velzeboer mee naar de finale. Naast de nummers 1 en 2 kwalificeerde ook de snelste nummer 3 van de twee halve finales zich en dat bleek Poutsma te zijn. Michelle Velzeboer redde het niet. De zus van Xandra Velzeboer viel en eindigde als vijfde.

Vier jaar terug, bij de Olympische Spelen van Beijing, strandde Xandra Velzeboer op de 500 meter nog in de kwartfinale.

• Choi wins snowboard halfpipe title with third run

• American star takes silver behind strong first round

The snowfall coming down on Livigno Snow Park on Thursday night helped produce one of the bigger Olympic upsets in snowboard history, as Chloe Kim’s bid to become the first rider to win three consecutive Olympic halfpipe gold medals fell just short.

Kim finished with a best score of 88.00 from her opening run, settling for silver behind surprise winner Choi Gaon of South Korea, whose heroic third run after an early fall earned 90.25 and rewrote the Olympic record books. Japan’s Mitsuki Ono took bronze with 85.00.

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