Watch the EDRS-C
launch

Liftoff of Ariane 5 VA249 planned for today, 6 August, between 21:30 and 23:51 CEST

Our week in images ->

Our week through the lens: 29 July - 2 August 2019

A sphere of colour ->

Space Science Image of the Week: Intriguing detail is visible in this close-up shot of the Sun from ESA's European Space Astronomy Centre

Latest news

10 October 2019
Astronauts and citizens team up against light pollution
For an astronaut looking out of the International Space Station windows, city lights are brighter than the stars. To tackle light pollution citizen scientists are urged to help map out the problem on their smartphones by identifying images of cities taken from space [...]
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10 October 2019
River relic spied by Mars Express
Mars may seem to be an alien world, but many of its features look eerily familiar – such as this ancient, dried-up river system that stretches out for nearly 700 kilometres across the surface, making it one of the longest valley networks on the planet [...]
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9 October 2019
Luca Powers up for a spacewalk
European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Luca Parmitano is expected to step out into space for his first spacewalk of the Beyond mission in November, but before then he will be support a number of spacewalks by NASA astronauts including the first all-female spacewalk by Christina Koch and Jessica Meir [...]
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8 October 2019
Can oceans turn the tide on the climate crisis?
As we pump more greenhouse gases into the atmosphere, the world is warming at an alarming rate, with devastating consequences. While our vast oceans are helping to take the heat out of climate change [...]
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Our missions

NAME
Sentinel
family
LISA Pathfinder
IXV
MTG
series
LAUNCH
2013
2015
2015
2021
MISSION
A portfolio of operational Earth observation missions
Technology demonstration for gravitational wave detection
Intermediate eXperimental Vehicle
Technology demonstration for gravitational wave detection

Connect with our astronauts

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Learn more about Thomas & others
Astronaut Thomas Pesquet
Thomas was launched to the International Space Station on 17 November 2016 for his six-month Proxima mission, as a flight engineer for Expeditions 50 and 51. Thomas was the 10th astronaut from France to head into space after a nine-year gap since ESA astronaut Léopold Eyharts during Expedition 16. His busy mission was the first to see all four cargo vehicles in operation at the time (HTV, Cygnus, Dragon and Progress) travelling to the Space Station.He tracked and captured two of them using the Station's robotic arm.

During his stay in space, he took part in over 50 experiments and the six crew members set a record for hours of time spent working on science. Other highlights of his mission included two spacewalks to maintain the Station: to replace batteries on an electrical channel.

Focus on

Space19+
ESA's plans for 'Space19+', the next Ministerial Council being held in Seville, Spain, 27-28 November 2019
Beyond mission
ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano's Beyond mission to the International Space Station
Downstream Gateway
A 'one-stop shop' for all downstream opportunities, linking new and emergin business sectors with capabilities being developed in ESA programmes
BepiColombo
Europe's first mission to Mercury will investigate the mysteries of the least explored planet in the inner Solar System
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