Helios 2 (satellite)
[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.[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.