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Ariane Sends French Spysats Into Orbit
Paris (AFP) December 3, 1999 - A European Ariane rocket on Friday hoisted a trinational military reconnaissance satellite, Helios 1-B, into orbit, France's National Centre for Space Studies (CNES) said. The launch of the modified Ariane-4 rocket and its 2.5-tonne payload took place at the European space centre at Kourou, French Guiana, at 1622 GMT, it said. France has a three-quarters stake in the satellite. The other participants are Italy and Spain. Helios 1-B is the second in a 1.5-billion-dollar programme launched in 1986. Helios 1-A was launched in July 1995. The two satellites are deployed at an altitude of about 800 kilometers (500 miles), on a course that takes them over North and South Poles. Ariane is operated by Arianespace, the marketing arm of the 12-country European Space Agency (ESA) consortium. Arianespace says it has orders, worth more than 20 billion francs (three billion dollars), to launch 42 satellites. Its next operation takes place on December 10, when the heavy-lifter Ariane-5 is due to make its first commercial launch, taking a giant European-made X-ray telescope into orbit. Community Email This Article Comment On This Article Related Links Space
Satellite Launch To Boost DTH In India
Calcutta, India (SPX) Dec 28, 2005The successful launch Thursday of India's heaviest satellite from spaceport of Kourou in French Guyana may have boosted the country's space research efforts to yet another level, but it has also lifted the spirits of at least three Direct-To-Home televisions broadcasters, one of which has been waiting for years to launch its services in India. |
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