On August 2, 2017 at 01:58 UTC (on August 1 at 22:58 local time) the “Vega” rocket-carrier was launched from Kourou Cosmodrome in French Guiana. The rocket orbited the “OPTSAT-3000” and the “Venus” satellites. Both satellites were built by Israel Aerospace Industries. The “Optsat 3000” is Italy’s first optical surveillance satellite designed for a lifetime of at least seven years, carries a Jupiter remote sensing camera provided by Israel-based Elbit Systems Ltd. capable of resolving objects on the ground smaller than a half-meter. The “Venus” (VENµS, Venus, Vegetation and Environment Monitoring New Micro-Satellite) mission is a 50-50 collaboration between Israel and France. “Venus” will take pictures of vegetation, glaciers, coastlines and other features from its high orbital position.