European Satellite Launcher Set for First Commercial Blast Off

This handout satellite image made available on February 11, 2025 by the European Space Agency and captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission on April 02, 2024, shows the Amsterdam Island, that is part of France's French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the Indian Ocean. (Photo by Handout / COPERNICUS SENTINEL-2 / AFP)
This handout satellite image made available on February 11, 2025 by the European Space Agency and captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission on April 02, 2024, shows the Amsterdam Island, that is part of France's French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the Indian Ocean. (Photo by Handout / COPERNICUS SENTINEL-2 / AFP)
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European Satellite Launcher Set for First Commercial Blast Off

This handout satellite image made available on February 11, 2025 by the European Space Agency and captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission on April 02, 2024, shows the Amsterdam Island, that is part of France's French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the Indian Ocean. (Photo by Handout / COPERNICUS SENTINEL-2 / AFP)
This handout satellite image made available on February 11, 2025 by the European Space Agency and captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission on April 02, 2024, shows the Amsterdam Island, that is part of France's French Southern and Antarctic Lands in the Indian Ocean. (Photo by Handout / COPERNICUS SENTINEL-2 / AFP)

After several postponements, Europe's Ariane 6 launcher will carry out its first commercial mission on Monday when it puts a French military intelligence satellite into space.

The launch from the Kourou base in French Guiana is key to Europe's efforts to build up its security autonomy amid the shocks caused by the US-Russia diplomatic rapprochement.

"The whole world is watching us," Arianespace chief executive David Cavailloles told AFP this month.

Ariane 5 was retired in 2023 and Europe has not been able to use Russia's Soyuz rocket for satellite launches since Russia's 2022 invasion of Ukraine.

Ariane 6 underwent a successful test in July last year and is scheduled to carry out five launches this year.

First scheduled in December, the launch was put back until February 26 and then March 3 because of problems getting the satellite to the Kourou base, according to Arianespace.

"All launches have risks. Problems can happen with the launcher, with the satellite. We make sure that everything is ready and if it needs a few extra weeks, a few extra months, it is not a problem," said Lionel Suchet, head of France's National Center for Space Studies (CNES).

Given the military role of the satellite being put into space, strict security precautions are being taken to limit access at the base while three Rafale fighter jets will patrol the surrounding skies.

"The satellite has to be protected. It has special instruments that must not be seen by just anybody," said Catherine Leveau, CNES director of space transport.

The CSO-3 satellite will complete a network of three French military satellites, with the first two launched in 2018 and 2020 by Soyuz.

The satellites "strengthen" France's military autonomy, according to CNES defence consultant Philippe Steininger.

Some of the images taken by CSO-3 will be shared with the German and Belgian militaries that have invested in the satellites.

Sweden also has access to some images in exchange for letting France use its space research center near the Arctic town of Kiruna.



Record Cold Grips Argentina, Chile and Uruguay

The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region. SEBASTIAN LOSADA / AFP
The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region. SEBASTIAN LOSADA / AFP
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Record Cold Grips Argentina, Chile and Uruguay

The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region. SEBASTIAN LOSADA / AFP
The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region. SEBASTIAN LOSADA / AFP

A polar air mass has brought record low temperatures to Argentina, Chile and Uruguay, causing at least 15 deaths and forcing governments to restrict gas supplies and activate emergency shelters.

The three South American countries have all recorded sharply below-zero temperatures as the polar air originated from Antarctica and swept across the region, said AFP.

In Argentina, at least nine homeless people have died from the cold this winter, according to NGO Proyecto 7.

The capital Buenos Aires recorded its lowest temperature since 1991 at -1.9 degrees Celcius (28.6 Fahrenheit) on Wednesday, while the coastal city of Miramar saw snow for the first time in 34 years. Further south, the town of Maquinchao recorded -18C on Tuesday.

Electricity demand caused cuts across Buenos Aires, leaving thousands without power for over 24 hours in some areas.

The government suspended gas supplies to industries and petrol stations Wednesday to ensure household supplies, and removed price controls on gas cylinders Thursday.

Desert snow

Uruguay declared a nationwide "red alert" after six people died, allowing President Yamandu Orsi's government to forcibly move homeless people to shelters.

Montevideo recorded its lowest maximum temperature since 1967 at 5.8C on June 30, according to meteorologist Mario Bidegain.

Chile also activated homeless shelter plans during the coldest days. The city of Chillan, 400 kilometers (250 miles) south of Santiago, hit -9.3C, according to the Chilean Meteorological Directorate.

"What happened this week in Chile and the Southern Cone in general is a cold wave caused by an escape of a polar air mass from Antarctica," climatologist Raul Cordero from the University of Santiago told AFP.

Snow even fell in parts of the Atacama Desert, the world's driest, for the first time in a decade.

"It is not so common for these cold air masses to extend so far north, so we cannot rule out that this is also caused by climate change," meteorologist Arnaldo Zuniga told AFP.

The region expects relief in the coming days, with Buenos Aires reaching 12C on Thursday, Montevideo 14C and Santiago 24.7C.

"I was quite surprised by the change from cold to hot -- the change was very drastic," student Dafne Naranjo, 18, said in Santiago.

Climatologist Cordero said heatwaves have become more frequent than cold spells in recent years.

"The frequency of heatwaves has tripled, whether in summer or winter, not only in the Southern Cone but throughout the world," he said.