Helios 2 (satellite)

This article is about the Multinational military satellites. For other uses, see Helios 2 (disambiguation).

The Helios 2 system, which consists of the Helios 2A and Helios 2B, is a French-developed military Earth observation satellite program.^[1] Financed at 90% by France, the development also involved minor participation from Belgium, Spain, Italy and Greece.^[2] Helios 2A was launched on 18 December 2004 by an Ariane 5 rocket from French Guiana.^[3]

Helios 2B was launched five years later, on 18 December 2009, carried also by an Ariane 5. The two satellites are identical.^[4] They carry a Thales-built high-resolution visible and thermal infrared instrument with 35 cm resolution,^[5] and an Airbus-built medium-resolution instrument.^[6] The Helios 2 satellite bus is nearly identical to the platform built by EADS Astrium for the Spot 5 civil-commercial optical observation satellite.^[7]

The Helios 2 will be replaced by the Composante Spatiale Optique (CSO), a new French program of three military observation satellites. The first satellite (CSO-1) was launched on 15 December 2018, the second (CSO-2) on 29 December 2020, with the final launch (CSO-3) being scheduled for 2024.^[8][9][10]

See also

• Spaceflight portal

• Hélios 1, the previous generation
• CSO, the follow-on system

References

1. "HELIOS II, A New Generation of Military Satellites". CNES. October 14, 2004. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
2. ESPI Report 72 -: Europe, Space and Defence - Full Report (PDF) (Report). European Space Policy Institute. February 2020. p. 22. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
3. "Helios 2A, Launch Successful". Via Satellite. December 20, 2004. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
4. "Cnes : Helios". Archived from the original on 2009-05-04. Retrieved 2004-12-20.
5. de Selding, Peter B. (January 4, 2010). "French Helios 2B Spy Sat Sends Back First Test Images". Space News. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
6. "HELIOS". CNES. March 5, 2019. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
7. de SELDING, Peter B. (June 29, 2004). "France's Helios 2A Recon Satellite Produces First Images". Space News. Retrieved December 4, 2022.
8. Parsonson, Andrew (10 July 2024). "Ariane 6 Anomaly Will Have "No Consequence" On Upcoming Missions". European Spaceflight. Retrieved 31 July 2024.
9. Foust, Jeff (30 November 2023). "ESA sets mid-2024 date for first Ariane 6 launch". SpaceNews. Retrieved 30 November 2023.
10. "CSO-2 Satellite in Orbit". Thales Group. 29 December 2020. Retrieved December 4, 2022.

External links