[Satellite TODAY 12-15-09] Arianespace rescheduled the launch of the French Space Agency’s (CNES) Helios 2B military observation satellite for Dec. 17, Arianespace announced.
    The launch was delayed when a problem was found with the rocket’s liquid helium subsystem on the cryogenic main stage prior to a scheduled Dec. 9 launch. Work on the problem has been completed, Arianespace said.
    Helios 2B, built and developed by EADS Astrium and Thales Alenia Space, will be placed into a Sun-synchronous orbit and managed by the French Defense Procurement Agency (DGA), which assigned contracting authority for the space segment to CNES. Helios 2B is the second satellite in France’s next-generation space-borne observation system for military applications that will be used in conjunction with Belgium, Spain, Italy and Greece.

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