Just a few kilometers from the equator, French Guyana has been the theatre for a steady string of rocket launches for the past fifty years, because it is right here that Europe built the Kourou Space Centre which has become the most important spaceport in the world.
Each year more than two dozen satellites are being launched. At the foot of the impressive Ariane 5 boosters, Serge Brunier observes the final launch preparations - a well-rehearsed performance involving over 1000 space centre engineers who multiply security checks and technical controls in order to meet this daunting technological feat: escaping the Earth's gravity.
AVAILABLE FOR VIEWING: original French version only.