Content for ESA

ESA

The European Space Agency (ESA) is an intergovernmental organisation 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 in 2018 and an annual budget of about €5.72 billion (~US$6.43 billion) in 2019. ESA's space flight programme includes human spaceflight (mainly through participation in the International Space Station program); the launch and operation of unmanned exploration missions to other planets and the Moon; Earth observation, science and telecommunication; designing launch vehicles; and maintaining a major spaceport, the Guiana Space Centre at Kourou, French Guiana. The main European launch vehicle Ariane 5 is operated through Arianespace with ESA sharing in the costs of launching and further developing this launch vehicle. The agency is also working with NASA to manufacture the Orion Spacecraft service module, that will fly on the Space Launch System.

Description Source

News  NASA, ESA Reveal Tale of Death, Dust in Orion Constellation

NASA, ESA Reveal Tale of Death, Dust in Orion Constellation

“In a tale of cosmic proportions, the region is being transformed by the massive stars that live and die within it. A new image combining previously released data from three telescopes shows a region that includes the Orion Nebula, named …

News  How MIRI became Webb’s coolest instrument

How MIRI became Webb’s coolest instrument

“The NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope is widely referred to as the successor to the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope. In reality, it is the successor to a lot more than that. With the inclusion of the Mid-InfraRed …

News  Plan to research solar power from space

Plan to research solar power from space

“The Sun never stops shining in space, and sunlight is much more intense there than on Earth’s surface. So what if we could gather that energy up in space then beam it down to Earth? Recent studies funded by …

News  NASA, ESA to Discuss Mars Sample Return Mission

NASA, ESA to Discuss Mars Sample Return Mission

“NASA will host a media teleconference at 11 a.m. EDT (8 a.m. PDT) on Wednesday, July 27, to discuss the architecture for its Mars Sample Return campaign. NASA and the ESA (European Space Agency) recently held a systems …

News  Swarm dodges collision during climb to escape Sun’s wrath

Swarm dodges collision during climb to escape Sun’s wrath

“The pressure is on at ESA’s mission control. An ESA satellite dodges out of the way of a mystery piece of space junk spotted just hours before a potential collision. Now a crucial step in the spacecraft’s ongoing …

News  Vega-C successfully completes inaugural flight

Vega-C successfully completes inaugural flight

“ESA’s new Vega-C rocket has completed its inaugural flight, placing main payload LARES-2 – a scientific mission of the Italian Space Agency ASI – into its planned orbit. Six research CubeSats from France, Italy and Slovenia flew as secondary payloads …

News  NASA’s Webb Telescope Launches to See First Galaxies, Distant Worlds

NASA’s Webb Telescope Launches to See First Galaxies, Distant Worlds

“NASA’s James Webb Space Telescope launched at 7:20 a.m. EST Saturday on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, South America. A joint effort with ESA (European Space Agency) and the Canadian Space …

News  Raspberry Pi computers head to International Space Station

Raspberry Pi computers head to International Space Station

“Two Raspberry Pi computers have launched into space from Cape Canaveral in Florida on a Space X rocket. The credit card-sized devices are heading to the International Space Station (ISS) to carry out experiments programmed by school pupils. It is …

News  Opening a 50-year-old Christmas present from the Moon

Opening a 50-year-old Christmas present from the Moon

“A pretty special gift unwrapping will soon take place – a piercing tool built by ESA will open a Moon soil container from Apollo 17 that has gone untouched for nearly 50 years. The opening will allow the extraction of precious …

News  Test tanks fuelled for ESA’s Themis reusable first stage

Test tanks fuelled for ESA’s Themis reusable first stage

“Recently completed tests of two propellant tanks set a first technological milestone in the ESA reusability roadmap towards the demonstration of a reusable first stage vehicle called Themis. Through the Themis programme, ESA aims to assess the economic value of …