Europe’s spaceport: an ideal launch site

Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, is the ideal launch site for an extraordinary mission such as the James Webb Space Telescope (Webb).

Because the Spaceport is located near the equator, launch vehicles gain extra performance thanks to a ‘slingshot effect’ due to the speed of Earth’s rotation. An open ocean towards the east offers a launch trajectory away from populated areas. In addition, this region has no risk of cyclones or earthquakes.

ESA owns the Ariane 5 launch complex and works closely with its partners: the French space agency CNES, which operates and maintains the spaceport; Arianespace, providing the launch service; and ArianeGroup and other industrial partners for launch vehicle assembly and launch operations.

Webb is an international partnership between NASA, the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).