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The world’s largest and most powerful space telescope rocketed away Saturday on a high-stakes quest to behold light from the first stars and galaxies and scour the universe for hints of life. NASA's James Webb Space Telescope soared from French Guiana on South America’s northeastern coast, riding a European Ariane rocket into the Christmas morning sky. The $10 billion observatory hurtled toward its destination 1 million miles (1.6 million kilometers) away, or more than four times beyond the moon. It will take a month to get there and another five months before its infrared eyes are ready to start scanning...

The $10 billion Webb — considered the successor to the Hubble Space Telescope — was supposed to soar Saturday, but was jolted by a clamp during launch preparations, resulting in a four-day delay. Then a bad communication link on the rocket had to be fixed, postponing the launch another two days. U.S. and European space officials signed off Friday on the launch date, following one last round of testing. Nelson expects a smaller crowd at the launch site because of the holidays. Liftoff is scheduled for 7:20 a.m. EST.

The launch readiness date for the James Webb Space Telescope is moving to no earlier than December 22 to allow for additional testing of the observatory, following a recent incident that occurred during Webb’s launch preparations. The incident occurred during operations at the satellite preparation facility in Kourou, French Guiana, performed under Arianespace overall responsibility. Technicians were preparing to attach Webb to the launch vehicle adapter, which is used to integrate the observatory with the upper stage of the Ariane 5 rocket. A sudden, unplanned release of a clamp band – which secures Webb to the launch vehicle adapter –...

South American nation holds miniature Amazon Synod, issues radical demands March 6, 2020 (LifeSiteNews) — The Catholic Church in French Guiana, one of the nine countries of the Amazon Basin represented at the Amazon Synod in Rome last October, recently held its second local synod with many winks to the Roman event. Several “resolutions” were made in favor of the rights of the indigenous peoples of the region. Also high on the list of priorities were reflections on the environment and the “past” of the local clergy. The most spectacular move involved a commitment on the part of the Church...

Operations, situation update, Update : 11/04/2018 Read this week's update on operations. Armed Forces of French Guiana (FAG) CHIEF OF DEFENCE STAFF VISITS ARMED FORCES OF FRENCH GUIANA France's Chief of Defence Staff, General Lecointre, completed his trip to French Guiana this week. During his visit, the General visited the 9th Marine Infantry Regiment (9th RIMa) and the 3rd Foreign Infantry Regiment (3rd REI), Air Base 367, and went aboard Guyanese light patrol vessel La Confiance. He also went to Saint-Elie Lake to meet sappers of the Engineers Regiment involved in Operation Harpie as they worked on dismantling primary gold-mining...

A group of five U.S. private rocket companies met with Brazilian officials in December. Boeing, Lockheed Martin and Vector are interested in launching from the equatorial Alcantara launch complex. The coastal launch site would offer cost savings by its ability to reach orbits often preferred for satellites. A group representing five U.S. private rocket companies visited Brazil in December to meet with the nation's space agency and analyze the possibility of launching from the equatorial Alcantara launch complex. The U.S. Department of Commerce was informed about the trip, which was organized by members of the private space industry. The group...

South Korea's first geostationary ocean-weather satellite has successfully reached Earth's orbit after being launched from Guiana Space Center in Kourou, French Guiana, the government said Sunday. The Ministry of Education, Science and Technology said the Chollian communication, ocean and meteorological satellite (COMS) blasted off from French Guiana on an Ariane 5-ECA rocket at 6:41 a.m. (Korea Time) after encountering minor technical problems on Thursday and Friday that delayed the launch. The Chollian successfully reached "geostationary transfer orbit" and separated from the second stage rocket roughly 32 minutes after takeoff, the ministry in charge of the country's space program said. It...

Just two days after US President Barack Hussein Obama shared a controversial and landmark handshake with Venezuelan dictator Hugo Chavez at the Summit of the Americas, the Intelligence and Terrorism Information Center has released a study analyzing the flowering alliance between the increasingly anti-Western Latin America and the virulently anti-Israel Iran. The study was conducted at the Israel Intelligence Heritage & Commemoration Center (IICC), a non-governmental organization dedicated to Israeli intelligence and terrorism issues. According to the study, Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad is using anti-Western Hugo Chavez as a springboard into several Latin American countries, such as Bolivia, Nicaragua, and...

French Guiana Turns Satellite Site Tue Aug 27, 8:30 PM ET By IAN JAMES, Associated Press Writer KOUROU, French Guiana (AP) - The thunderous roar of a rocket often rattles windows in this corner of South America that is the world's busiest launch site for commercial satellites. It has changed the face of Kourou which, before the inaugural launch in 1968, resembled other poor villages in the forested and sparsely populated region. Today, the town is filled with condominiums, convenience stores and night clubs. New Renaults and Peugeots line the streets. And poor immigrants from Brazil, Suriname and Haiti come...