Kourou (AFP)

A Soyuz rocket successfully placed the French military observation satellite CSO-2 into orbit on Tuesday, according to a broadcast on the Arianespace site.

The launcher took off at the scheduled time (1:42 p.m. Kourou time, 5:42 p.m. in Paris) and fulfilled its mission by releasing the satellite into its orbit after a 59-minute mission.

The firing, initially scheduled for Monday, had to be postponed by one day due to unfavorable altitude winds.

Covid obliges, its success was celebrated by nudges in the control room of the Sinnamary firing point in French Guiana.

CSO-2, with a mass of 3,562 kg at takeoff, will work for ten years in a low orbit of 480 km altitude, from which it will be able to identify, for example, light weapons.

It will provide images "at very high resolution in the visible and infrared domains, in clear weather, day or night", according to a press release from the National Center for Space Studies (Cnes), which is the contracting authority with the Delegation general armament.

It is one of the three satellites of the CSO constellation (optical space component), aimed at replacing the military observation satellites Helios 2A and Helios 2B, launched in 2004 and 2009 respectively, and still operational.

This constellation provides images useful for intelligence, -allowing for example to evaluate enemy forces-, targeting, -providing precise geolocation coordinates-, and detailed geographic data on theaters of operation.

Built by Airbus Defense and Space France, with an optical instrument supplied by Thales Alenia Space, it represents with CSO-1 "a real generational leap," Paul Arberet, CSO project manager at Cnes, told AFP.

CSO-1, launched in December 2018, is positioned at an altitude of 800 kilometers, just like CSO-3, whose launch is scheduled for late 2021.

The latter two are assigned to so-called "reconnaissance" missions, while CSO-2, positioned lower, will have an "identification" mission.

If the resolution of its optical instruments is classified, "its positioning at mid-distance will offer a resolution twice as important" as CSO-1 and CSO-3, allowing "to identify a weapon on a pick-up", explains to AFP M. Arberet.

The data from the CSO satellite constellation are accessible to European partners, -Germany, Belgium, Italy, Sweden-, through bilateral agreements with France.

Switzerland is about to join this user community.

If CSO-1 and CSO-2 were launched with the help of a Russian rocket, CSO-3 will be launched with the Ariane-6 launcher, according to Stéphane Israël, CEO of Arianespace, a company responsible for the marketing of flights from Soyuz.

"Gradually (future European rockets) Ariane 6 and Vega C will take over for European institutional missions," he told AFP.

France has made an effort to strengthen its military presence in space and plans to devote 4.3 billion euros to it as part of its 2019-2025 military programming law.

Defense Minister Florence Parly announced in June 2019 the launch of studies for future generations of military satellites.

One of these programs, called "Iris", will succeed the satellites of the CSO constellation.

Another program, called "Celeste", will take over from the CERES satellites of intelligence of electromagnetic origin (ROEM).

The various components of this presence and the means to protect it are grouped together in a military space command, the creation of which was announced by President Emmanuel Macron in July 2019.

© 2020 AFP