# Arianespace Flight VS20 – Successful Soyuz Launch

FLIGHT VS20: ARIANESPACE SUPPORTS FRANCE AND EUROPEAN DEFENSE WITH THE CSO-1 SATELLITE’S SUCCESSFUL LAUNCH FOR CNES AND DGA

For its 11th and final launch of the year – and the third in 2018 with the Soyuz medium- lift launcher – Arianespace successfully orbited the CSO-1 military Earth observation satellite for the French CNES (Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales) space agency and the DGA (Direction générale de l’armement) defense procurement agency on behalf of the French Ministry of Defense.

The launch took place on Wednesday, December 19 at 1:37 p.m. (local time) from the Guiana Space Center (CSG), Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana (South America).

With this latest launch in support of France’s defense requirements, as well as for the capability needs of several partner countries, Arianespace once again guarantees French and European independent access to space — which is a strategic priority and a key element for sovereignty.

CSO-1 is the first satellite of the Optical Space Component (CSO – Composante Spatiale Optique) program, comprising a constellation of three new-generation satellites for the French Ministry of Defense. They will carry out two different missions: reconnaissance for CSO-1 and CSO-3, and identification for CSO-2.

Airbus Defence and Space France is prime contractor for the satellites, while Thales Alenia Space France is supplying the optical imaging instrument.

To date, Arianespace’s backlog includes six more missions for CNES and the DGA:…

- Kind: Short
- Year: 2018
- Runtime: 1 min
- By: Arianespace
- Archive: [Wikimedia Commons](https://commons.wikimedia.org/wiki/File:Arianespace_Flight_VS20_%E2%80%93_Successful_Soyuz_Launch.webm)
- Licence or status: [CC BY 3.0](https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/3.0) (as the archive states it)
- Credit: Arianespace
- Who can watch: Teens profiles and older (the archive gives no rating; placed by Invisible Network from its collection and subjects)

[Watch now](https://invisiblenetwork.ai/watch/archive/commons/89575195?play=1)