Tuesdays are good days here!
Last week we went to a satellite launch at Kourou (more about that in a minute) and this week our new dinghy arrived!!
Last week we went to a satellite launch at Kourou (more about that in a minute) and this week our new dinghy arrived!!
We have been very fortunate since we have been without a dinghy –firstly Nine of Cups gave us lifts ashore, lent us their dinghy when they were away and on their return continued to act as our personal taxi; then we were able to borrow Davide’s (marina owner) dinghy as he had no pressing need of it now he had finished laying all his moorings. However it’s not the same and we were careful not to use it too much – we were always worried that something will go wrong and it would be our fault!! We were just about to run out of water and it was SOO much better and easier to collect it in our own dinghy!
We had ordered it over the internet from a dealer in France. This took a while to finalise as they needed additional money for carriage but we did not get their email and it took a phone call from Samuel to help sort it out. `Davide and Samuel were really helpful and made sure that we did not have to pay import tax on it. This can be a problem; although as a 'part' for our “Boat in Transit” we are not liable for the tax, the customs officers do not always agree! The dinghy took about 10 days to arrive in Cayenne, the capital of French Guiana (about 260 kms, 165 miles away)and another 10 to be sent to St Laurent and for all the paperwork to be sorted before Davide could collect it from the Post Office for us!
Back to the satellite launch.
Guiana Space Centre (CSG) is EUROPE’s space port! As French Guiana is still part of France, everything here qualifies as being European and the space centre guarantees the independence of Europe’s access to space.
The CSG is just outside Kourou – about 200kms, 125 miles from here.
Guiana Space Centre (CSG) is EUROPE’s space port! As French Guiana is still part of France, everything here qualifies as being European and the space centre guarantees the independence of Europe’s access to space.
The CSG is just outside Kourou – about 200kms, 125 miles from here.
From here satellites can be launched within 14 day intervals and we saw Ariane 5 VA227 launch 2 satellites; ARABSAT-68 a communications satellite for North Africa and the Middle East on behalf of A Saudi Arabian operator and GSAT-15 built by the Indian Space Agency to provide communication services and to boost the GPS signal GAGAN, used mostly for air control management. Yes, you’re right I’ve been copying most of that!
It was an amazing day! It was all laid on for us by the tourist office and was completely free.
It was an amazing day! It was all laid on for us by the tourist office and was completely free.
We were to arrive at the tourist office (100 yards from the marina office) by 12.00 mid-day. Inevitably just as we were leaving the heavens opened and we wondered if we would be able to make it ashore as the rain was so heavy. Luckily it stopped and we arrived in good time. An air-conditioned coach was waiting for us there and we started our journey. The first leg took us to a hotel about 30km away from Kourou where we met up with others going the launch form that side of Kourou. After about 1 ½ hrs we were checked in, our bags checked and us checked with a metal detector (as at airports if the alarm goes off!) and we then boarded a CSG coach no 9 (the relevance of this occurred to us later) to go to the viewing site. Once we were on the CSG land we waited again for another 9 coaches to up meet with us and we all proceeded along a very rough track for about 40 minutes to arrive at the site.
It was not at all as we had expected. It was almost semi-permanent; a large tarmacked area with 2 large tents rather like circus tents without the sides and inside each was a large television screen and rows of plastic chairs. It was set on the top of a hill and down the valley through a comparatively narrow gap you could just see the rocket. Well I actually had to check what it looked like with the screen in the tent before I was sure what was what. We were actually 7.5 kms (4.5 miles) away. I was quite disappointed and thought we would see nothing but decided that at least I would see it for real rather than looking at the screen and sat down on the edge of the tarmac where Chris joined as the commentary on the screens was very repetitious. |
The launch was at 18.34 and suddenly it was countdown time, 10,9,8,7,6,5,4,3,2,1…..delay!! And then suddenly the base lit up and I realised that in fact at the distance we were we could actually see more as much closer and the glare would have blocked everything out. BANG sonic boom and the air crackled after for some seconds. It was AMAZING!!! We could see the boosters and fairing being jettisoned and the main stage separating. After that it had gone – all in a few seconds.
Pictures are a bit out of order to fit in!!!
There was a simulation of the satellites separating on the screen and shots of the control room with cheers and claps when all had gone well, about 45 minutes after lift-off. There were also many many speeches etc that would have probably been boring in English but when you can’t understand French…………………….
We were finally allowed back onto the coaches and driven past their Soyuz installation (not that we could really see anything!) back to the hotel, transferred onto our coach and eventually arrived back in St Laurent about 10.45pm.
My camera is really not capable of taking these sort of shots and the guy sitting next to us took some really brilliant ones – we asked if he could email some to us but I forgot to check our junk mail for a couple of days and think that very sadly we have lost them – ah well if we’d not been sitting there we would not even have seen them anyway!
My camera is really not capable of taking these sort of shots and the guy sitting next to us took some really brilliant ones – we asked if he could email some to us but I forgot to check our junk mail for a couple of days and think that very sadly we have lost them – ah well if we’d not been sitting there we would not even have seen them anyway!
It was a long trip and parts were a bit boring but we wouldn’t have missed it for the world!