The Malindi station

In order to be able to fully track Ariane 5, a fifth site was required.  San Marco is located in Kenya, near the town of Malindi on the east African coast, around 100 km north of Mombasa.  This site was chosen because it is further east than Libreville, but also because the station, which is staffed by researchers from the University of Rome, is part of ESA's satellite tracking network.  San Marco also has a floating spaceport, from which the Italians launch small scientific satellites using an Italian version of the American Scout launcher.  Since special equipment was installed in 1997, the Malindi station has been able to deal with Ariane 5 launches, and was operational for the second launch of Ariane 5, flight 502.