Spaceport in French Guiana

Kourou launch site is the most visited tourist destination in the country of French Guiana. It is important to note that thanks to the diligence of the European Space Agency's Kourou - is the most amazing and spectacular launch site in the world. This launch site is located approximately 65 kilometers from the capital of French Guiana - Cayenne - the river of the same name.
Guiana Space Centre, which has a second, familiar to many people, the name Spaceport Kourou, located on the Atlantic coast and occupies a strip, a length of approximately 60 kilometers and a width of about 20 kilometers.
Kourou space center is located in this particular location quite by chance. Indeed, in French Guiana is always fairly good weather, is neither a tsunami or typhoon. The area is surrounded by jungle launch site from all sides. Guiana Space Centre is located geographically close to the ocean, and most importantly - it is close enough to the equator, as is well known that the closer the launch site is located to the equator, the more accurately you can bring the spacecraft directly into orbit, while expending fewer material resources . Anyway, at the equator, the inertia of the Earth's rotation, by definition, is the highest, it follows that the orbit can be derived more heavy, massive cargo with less fuel.
Guiana Space Centre belongs to the European Space Agency, which runs continuously boosters Arian, is directly involved in the withdrawal of satellites in Earth orbit.

The complex "Soyuz" is part of the Guiana Space Centre, which is designed and embodied in the reality of our local experts in the industry. It is from this spaceport, according to the decision of the European Space Agency, are launched into Earth orbit Russian launch vehicles under the name "Union".
As the "Union" is a good enough credit history, as well as its proven history of reliability, the French were able to choose the "Union" main carrier rocket, belonging to the middle class.
For the first time in mid-October 2011 "The Union" was launched from the Guiana Kourou. After this flight to the target orbit was removed a couple of European satellite navigation system designed for the company Galileo.
It does not take a significant period of time as from the Guiana Kourou again held a successful launch rocket "Soyuz-ST" December 17, 2011. Early in the morning at 6:03 there was a long-awaited launch of the rocket. With this flight the booster could bring to the target orbit six satellites from which a satellite - Chile and the other five - French machines.
Launching rockets "Soyuz" from the Guiana Space Center is committed on the basis of a signed treaty between France and Russia. It is planned that within ten years from the launch site will start with four missiles per year.