European Space Agency
The European Space Agency is an intergovernmental organization of 22 member states dedicated to the exploration of space. Established in 1975 and headquartered in Paris, ESA has a worldwide staff of about 2,200
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The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope has successfully completed its final tests and is being prepared for shipment to its launch site at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. View the full article
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Image: Samples of the Biofilms experiment are headed to the International Space Station on the SpaceX CR23 cargo resupply mission this weekend to help maintain astronaut and material safety in space. A common piece of advice of the past 18 months has been to make sure you wash your hands thoroughly. This is because microorganisms are easily spread across common surfaces like door handles and light switches, and it is no less true in space. The Space Station is, after all, a lab as well as a home to astronauts. It is especially important to keep this environment safe for the long-term health of astronauts and equipment on board. Funded by ESA and developed by the Chair…
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Video: 00:02:32 ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet takes you on a tour of the International Space Station like no other. Filmed with a 360 camera, the Space Station 360 series lets you explore for yourself alongside Thomas’s explanation – starting with Europe’s science laboratory, Columbus. Columbus is not the Station’s largest module, but it is one of the best equipped. It is the place where European astronauts conduct most of their work on board and has an external platform that allows experiments to be exposed to the vacuum of space. In addition to science racks, Columbus offers storage space and even a new crew quarter for sleeping. Click and drag with your mouse or…
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Video: 00:51:12 Water is life, on Earth and in space. Dutch ESA astronaut André Kuipers recounts his experience living in space for 204 days, and his time looking back on the blue face of ‘Planet Aqua’, comparing notes with divers about what is going on beneath the waves. He goes on to explore how space technology is being used for water management, from orbital tracking of water quality and pollution to spacecraft-grade recycling systems deployed down on the ground, as well as ambitious efforts to identify marine plastic litter using satellites. Produced for SIWI World Water Week with the support of the Netherlands Ministry of Foreign Affairs. View the full art…
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ESA safeguards Europe’s guaranteed access to space through its Future Launchers Preparatory Programme, FLPP. View the full article
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From space, the synchronous retreat of the world’s glaciers can be clearly observed. To get a first-hand view of these changes, ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano, along with Susanne Mecklenburg, Head of ESA’s Climate Office, have joined a science expedition taking place at one of the biggest ice masses in the Alps: the Gorner Glacier. View the full article
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Astronaut hopefuls are being asked for their patience as ESA processes over 23 000 applications to its Astronaut and Astronaut (with a disability) vacancies. This number far exceeds the Agency’s most optimistic forecasts. View the full article
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Week in images: 16 - 20 August 2021 Discover our week through the lens View the full article
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Image: New radar images show the A-74 iceberg spinning around the western tip of the Brunt Ice Shelf, brushing slightly against it before continuing southwards. View the full article
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Image: After four months of darkness, it is finally time to rise and shine for the crew at Concordia Research Station in Antarctica. The most-welcome Sun finally made its appearance on 11 August and ESA-sponsored medical doctor Nick Smith was not about to miss it. For nine months Nick and his fellow crew mates have been living and working in one of the most isolated, confined and extreme environments on Earth, with no way in or out of the Station during the winter-over period. Nick is overseeing experiments in human physiology and biology, atmospheric physics, meteorology, and astronomy, among other disciplines. Along with the rest of the crew, he is also maintainin…
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Europe’s Vega has delivered Pléiades Neo-4 and four auxiliary payloads, SunStorm, RadCube and LEDSAT developed through ESA, and BRO-4, to their planned orbits. View the full article
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Tune in to ESA Web TV from 02:37 BST / 03:37 CEST on 17 August to watch the Vega launch live. View the full article
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Week in images: 09 - 13 August 2021 Discover our week through the lens View the full article
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Image: Parts of the Mediterranean and central Europe have experienced extreme temperatures this summer, with wildfires causing devastation on the Greek island of Evia. This Copernicus Sentinel-2 image shows the extent of the burned area in the northern part of the island. View the full article
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Video: 00:00:57 A stunning sequence of 89 images taken by the monitoring cameras on board the European-Japanese BepiColombo mission to Mercury, as the spacecraft made a close approach of Venus on 10 August 2021. The sequence includes images from all three Monitoring Cameras (MCAM) onboard the Mercury Transfer Module, which provides black-and-white snapshots in 1024 x 1024 pixel resolution. It is not possible to image with the high-resolution camera suite during the cruise phase. The images have been lightly processed to enhance contrast and use the full dynamic range. A small amount of optical vignetting is seen in the corners of some of the images. The first imag…
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Image: BepiColombo skims past Venus View the full article
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Video: 00:03:21 Meet bag, bottle and straw, three bits of plastic left on the beach. They are only small, but they are heading into the ocean, where they could cause big damage. ESA is exploring how satellites can help detect and reduce plastic pollution in the ocean. From spotting build-ups of marine litter to tracking ocean currents, satellites could be game-changing in tackling this enormous environmental problem. Though engaging for children and adults alike, this video is designed with 8–12-year-olds in mind. In particular, teachers can use it to introduce the topic of marine litter in subjects such as geography and science. A Dutch version will be available …
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Video: 00:09:41 The International Space Station Expedition 65 crew recorded themselves on a day off after a long week of work having some weightless fun. From Earth orbit, 400 km above our planet, the crew present the very first Space Olympics. ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet shared this video on social media with the caption: “The first ever Space Olympics ! A Saturday afternoon on the International Space Station. Four disciplines. Rules that evolved as we played. Seven athletes. Four nations. Two teams. Crew cohesion and morale boosted like never before. The first Space Olympics saw Team Crew Dragon and Team Soyuz compete in lack-of-floor-routine, no-handball, sync…
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With the first Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite in orbit since 2015 and the second since 2017, engineers are busy preparing the mission’s follow-on pair to eventually pick up the baton to supply images for a myriad of applications from food security to monitoring the decline of Earth’s ice. Slated for launch at the beginning of 2024, Sentinel-2C has just started a punishing five-month testing programme to ensure that it is fit for its life in space. View the full article
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Week in images: 02 - 06 August 2021 Discover our week through the lens View the full article
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Image: Crater trio View the full article
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Forests are not only key to moderating our climate by sequestering atmospheric carbon, but they also create a cooling effect by increasing low-level cloud. A first global assessment using satellite observations has shown that for two-thirds of the world, afforestation increases low-level cloud cover, with the effect being strongest over evergreen needleleaf forest. View the full article
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Russia has the largest area of forest on the planet, with more than a fifth of the world's trees. A new study, led by Russian scientists using data from ESA’s Climate Change Initiative, has produced new estimates of biomass contained in Russian forests, and confirms that the vast forested area is storing more carbon than previously estimated. View the full article
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Image: This map generated using data from Copernicus Sentinel-3 shows the temperature of the land surface on 2 August 2021. View the full article
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Image: Captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-3 mission on 30 July 2021, this image shows smoke billowing from several fires along the southern coast of Turkey. View the full article
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