Centre
National d'ƒtudes Spatiales (CNES), established 1962, is the French national agency responsible for space
research.
Its headquarters is outside Paris, and its main
research and test center is at Toulouse. Through CNES, France has been a driving force in the development of European space programs, now coordinated in the European Space Agency. In 1965, CNES, using a Diamant B launcher, placed a satellite in orbit, making France the third nation to achieve that capability. CNES runs the facility at Kourou, French Guiana, from which the Ariane rockets are launched.