Space News & Blog Articles

Image: The drone has landed

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It’s the first mission of its kind, set to monitor our active and unpredictable Sun and help protect us from its violent outbursts – and it has a new name.

Once known as “Lagrange,” ESA’s upcoming space weather mission needed a new name that would reflect its vital role: helping to protect Earth’s infrastructure, satellites, inhabitants and space explorers from unpredictable but violent solar events like solar flares and ‘coronal mass ejections’.

Climate models are an important tool for scientists to understand our past climate and provide projections of future change. As such, they are in increasing demand as part of efforts to avert global warming and reduce risks associated with environmental change. To meet this demand, the World Climate Research Programme will open a new international office in the United Kingdom on 1 March 2022 that will coordinate the programme’s Climate Model Intercomparison Project.

The Copernicus Sentinel satellite missions measure and image our planet in different ways to return a wealth of complementary information so that we can understand and track how our world is changing, and how to better manage our environment and resources. Thanks to the benefits of different types of data from two particular Copernicus Sentinel missions and an ingenious new dataset tool, people working in the agriculture sector, but who are not satellite data experts, can monitor the health and development of crops, right down to each crop in individual fields.

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Scientist, engineer, test subject and tradesperson – astronauts in orbit wear many different hats. In this 360° timelapse, ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer works to repair a faulty valve behind EXPRESS-Rack 3.

Week in images: 31 January - 4 February 2022

Image: A new eruption started at the Anak Krakatoa volcano in Indonesia on 3 February 2022, as seen in this image captured by the Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission.

Could satellites be able to help track and map the marine plastic waste befouling our oceans? Research teams from across Europe returned to a Netherlands-based ocean wave test facility to try and detect floating plastic. Using a suite of microwave and optical instruments, the researchers are assessing if orbital monitoring of plastic might be practical in the future.

The Copernicus Sentinel-2 mission takes us over Batura Glacier – one of the largest and longest glaciers in the world, outside of the polar regions.

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Embark on a mission with ESA astronomers Mark McCaughrean and Giovanna Giardino to learn more about the James Webb Space Telescope and the early Universe. This programme is suitable for primary and secondary students. Join the quest!

The Moon is set to gain one more crater. A leftover SpaceX Falcon 9 upper stage will impact the lunar surface in early March, marking the first time that a human-made debris item unintentionally reaches our natural satellite.

Image: Roof of the satnav world

You may have heard of the Trojans, two vast swarms of asteroids that lead and trail Jupiter on its orbit around the Sun.

The 2022 ESA YGT opportunities are now open for applications. Positions are available in engineering, science, IT and business services. Find out more and apply now.  

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ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti is all smiles alongside her Crew-4 mates during a training session at SpaceX headquarters in Hawthorne, California, USA.

Hibernating astronauts could be the best way to save mission costs, reduce the size of spacecraft by a third and keep crew healthy on their way to Mars. An ESA-led investigation suggests that human hibernation goes beyond the realm of science-fiction and may become a game-changing technique for space travel.

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Spaceflight participants Yusaku Maezawa and Yozo Hirano and Russian cosmonaut Alexander Misurkin were welcomed to the International Space Station on 8 December 2021 for a 12 day stay in space. Experience their arrival and farewell in 360° as captured by ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer from within the Russian segment.

Week in images: 24 - 28 January 2022

Image: Crater tree rings