Europe in Space

Think of it as the ultimate hitchhiking opportunity: ESA is offering CubeSats a ride to a pair of asteroids in deep space.

Key science elements of the James Webb Space Telescope have been upgraded ahead of the observatory’s launch in 2018.

Before Sentinel-2A is packed up and shipped to French Guiana for its launch targeted on 12 June, media representatives and specialists got one last look at the second satellite for Europe’s Copernicus programme.

ESA’s IXV spaceplane, launched on a Vega rocket on 11 February, is now on its way to Europe for detailed study in Italy.

Emergency services rescued 1780 people in the Austrian Alps last year. They can now count on satellites to access maps, send messages, give warnings and stay in contact.

In Antarctica, the crew of the French–Italian Concordia research station are preparing for the winter. They have to survive six months of complete isolation – four in darkness because the Sun never rises above the horizon – while they perform science in one of the most barren places on Earth.

A complex network of isolated hills, ridges and small basins spanning 1400 km on Mars is thought to hide large quantities of water-ice.

Following the initial selection in 2013 for Biomass to become ESA’s seventh Earth Explorer mission and the completion of preparatory activities, ESA Member States yesterday gave the green light for its full implementation for launch in 2020.

Thanks to space, some Parisian Metro riders now enjoy a very high-tech commute. A satellite spin-off is paving the way for more comfortable journeys.

Thanks to space, some Parisian Metro riders now enjoy a very high-tech commute. A satellite spin-off is paving the way for more comfortable journeys.;

With fundamental changes happening to the chemistry of the world’s oceans, salinity information from ESA’s SMOS mission is being used with other Earth observation data to obtain information on ‘the other carbon dioxide problem’ – ocean acidification.

Plumes seen reaching high above the surface of Mars are causing a stir among scientists studying the atmosphere on the Red Planet.

ESA’s fifth automated cargo ferry completed its mission to the International Space Station today when it reentered the atmosphere and burned up safely over an uninhabited area of the southern Pacific Ocean.

An experimental vehicle to develop an autonomous European reentry capability for future reusable space transportation has completed its mission. ESA’s Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle flew a flawless reentry and splashed down in the Pacific Ocean just west of the Galapagos islands.

The next crews to visit the International Space Station, including ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet, have been announced.

ESA’s last Automated Transfer Vehicle will leave the International Space Station on Saturday for its final solo voyage, setting course for a fiery demise that will mark the end of its mission and the programme.

An annotated timeline of the most critical events during the IXV mission. ESA’s wingless spaceplane is set for liftoff on a Vega rocket from Kourou, French Guiana, 11 February 2015.