The infrared space telescope Euclid was supposed to launch this year from the European spaceport in Kourou. But sanctions against Russia forced ESA to sever ties with the Russian space agency. Roscosmos responded by ending cooperation with Europe on Soyuz rocket launches from French Guiana and recalling 87 of its employees from the spaceport. As a result, Euclid lost the opportunity to go into space on a Russian rocket.
Europe began looking for other locations for orbital flights, including the private space industry in the US. Mark Clampin, director of NASA’s Astrophysics Division, said ESA could launch the Euclidean mission aboard SpaceX’s Falcon 9 rocket by mid to late 2023.
Source: Ferra
