European Space Agency

Image: ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański from Poland inside the Columbus mockup at EAC. View the full article

As of 1 September 2023, Sławosz Uznański joined ESA as a project astronaut anticipating flying on a future space mission. View the full article

Image: Artificial star View the full article

ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen will film thunderstorms and lightning shooting up towards space as part of the climate science of the Huginn mission. View the full article

Image: X-ray mission lifts off to study high-energy Universe View the full article

Scientists have used Solar Orbiter’s EUI camera in a new mode of operation to record part of the Sun’s atmosphere at extreme ultraviolet wavelengths that has been almost impossible to image until now. This new mode of operation was made possible with a last-minute ‘hack’ to the camera and will almost certainly influence new solar instruments for future missions. View the full article

Video: 00:01:07 On 5 September 2023, teams from France’s space agency CNES and Arianegroup under the lead of ESA carried out a complete Ariane 6 launch sequence on its launch pad at Europe’s spaceport in French Guiana. The test ended with a hot-fire of the launcher’s core stage and startup of the Vulcain 2.1 engine. This is a key step in the test campaign. It follows from initial integration of the Ariane 6 launcher on its launch pad, electrical and fluid system tests and the first launch sequence test run on 18 July 2023. This test involved a launch sequence and final countdown representative of a launch, including removal of the Ariane 6 mobile gantry and filling the launcher’s upper and core stage tanks with liquid hydrogen and liquid oxygen. The test ended with the ignition and the startup of the core stage’s Vulcain 2.1 engine, followed by four seconds of firing. The next milestone is to complete a core stage long hot-fire test, where the Vulcain 2.1 engine will operate for about 8 minutes. Ariane 6 is an all-new design, created to succeed Ariane 5 as Europe's heavy-lift launch system. With Ariane 6's upper stage and its reignitable Vinci engine, Europe's launch capability will be tailored to the needs of multiple payloads, for example to orbit satellite constellations. This autonomous capability to reach Earth orbit and deep space supports Europe's navigation, Earth observation, scientific and security programmes. Ongoing development of Europe's space transportation capabilities is made possible by the sustained dedication of thousands of talented people working in ESA's 22 Member States. www.esa.int/ariane Access the related broadcast quality video material. View the full article

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As quantum technology continues to shape our future, quantum entanglement remains a crucial element in unlocking valuable space applications, but how robust is it? View the full article

Take your chance to meet astronauts, view spacecraft and peer behind the scenes of Europe’s space adventure at our ESA Open Day at ESTEC in the Netherlands on Sunday 8 October. Registration is now open. View the full article

Video: 01:00:57 Watch the replay of the media briefing and the question-and-answer session outlining the progress achieved and the upcoming steps in the Ariane 6 development test campaign. Updates are given on tests conducted at Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, and at the German Aerospace Center DLR’s technical centre in Lampoldshausen, Germany. The briefing was held on 4 September 2023 from ESA’s Headquarters in Paris, France. Participants included: Josef Aschbacher, Director General, ESA Martin Sion, CEO, ArianeGroup Philippe Baptiste, Chairman and CEO, CNES Stéphane Israël, CEO, Arianespace Toni Tolker-Nielsen, Director of Space Transportation, ESA Carine Leveau, Director of Space Transportation, CNES Stefan Schlechtriem, Director of Lampoldshausen, DLR The Ariane 6 launcher task force consists of top management at ESA, launch base prime contractor and France’s space agency CNES, launcher system prime contractor ArianeGroup and launch service provider Arianespace. This group reports regularly on progress being made towards the first flight of Ariane 6. The video shown during the briefing was of tests of the full Ariane 6 upper stage – including the new Vinci engine and a smaller Auxiliary Power Unit (APU). They took place on 1 September on a purpose-built test bench at DLR’s engine test centre in Lampoldshausen, Germany. Watch the video in high-resolution here. Access the related broadcast quality video material. View the full article

Video: 00:01:01 On 1 September 2023 ESA’s all-new Ariane 6 launch vehicle fired its two upper stage engines to simulate the way they will have to operate together at German aerospace agency DLR’s engine test centre in Lampoldshausen, Germany. The test – of the new Vinci engine and a smaller Auxiliary Power Unit (APU) – took place on a purpose-built test bench. Vinci, the upper stage engine of Ariane 6 fed by liquid hydrogen and oxygen, can be stopped and restarted multiple times – to place satellites into different orbits and then de-orbit the upper stage, so it is not left behind as hazardous debris in space. The APU makes it possible for Vinci to restart in space, by maintaining adequate pressure in the fuel tanks and preventing bubbles in the fuel lines. The power unit uses small amounts of liquid hydrogen and oxygen from the main tanks – replacing a system which relied on large quantities of tanked helium. Ariane 6 is an all-new design, created to succeed Ariane 5 as Europe's heavy-lift launch system. This autonomous capability to reach Earth orbit and deep space is the foundation of Europe's vision of space-enabled navigation, Earth observation, scientific and security services. This vision is reality thanks to the sustained dedication of thousands of talented people working in ESA's 22 Member States who call themselves #SpaceTeamEurope. ESA owns and manages the Ariane 6 programme and defines its performance objectives; ArianeGroup is the prime contractor, and launch operator is Arianespace. France's space agency, CNES, operates Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana – the home of Ariane launchers since the first liftoff in 1979. www.esa.int/ariane Access the related broadcast quality clips. View the full article

Validation testing continues for ESA’s all-new Ariane 6 launch vehicle, with firing of its two upper stage engines to simulate the way they will have to operate together during a flight. View the full article

Week in images: 28 August - 01 September 2023 Discover our week through the lens View the full article

Image: Hera asteroid mission here View the full article

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During his Huginn mission, ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen will run two experiments focusing on sleeping in space: Circadian Light and Sleep in Orbit. View the full article

Image: Chasing Chandrayaan and the super blue Moon View the full article

Video: 00:05:10 Space exploration presents unique health challenges for astronauts due to lack of gravity, isolation, and radiation exposure. ESA's SciSpacE activities aim to comprehend these effects and their implications for human well-being during extended missions. ESA collaborates with researchers to conduct experiments in microgravity and analogue environments, shedding light on the consequences of space stressors. One critical concern is muscle and bone atrophy. Despite daily exercise routines, astronauts face deterioration. ESA is investigating electrical stimulation as a potential countermeasure, with tests planned on board the International Space Station. The "Muscle Stimulation" experiment is a centrepiece of this research. By applying controlled electric currents to leg muscles, the study aims to enhance muscle mass, strength, and recovery. Complementary assessments, including MRI scans, microcirculation analysis, and blood samples, will provide a comprehensive understanding of the efficacy. Addressing these challenges could yield benefits on Earth too. The insights gained could translate to better healthcare for diverse populations, from the elderly to clinical patients and athletes. ESA's dedication to advancing space exploration while safeguarding astronauts' physical health underscores its commitment to a sustainable and thriving space programme. Through research and innovative solutions, humanity edges closer to conquering the challenges of extended spaceflight and improving life on our home planet. View the full article

Video: 00:03:06 Huginn, Andreas Mogensen's second mission to the International Space Station, is now underway. Together with Crew-7, the ESA astronaut launched aboard the Crew Dragon spacecraft Endurance on 26 August 2023, at 09:27 CEST (08:27 BST). Alongside him are NASA's Jasmin Moghbeli, Satoshi Furukawa from JAXA, and Konstantin Borisov from Roscosmos. The crew will spend approximately six months on the Space Station, 420 kilometres above Earth. This isn't Andreas's first journey into space. In 2015, he participated in the 10-day "iriss" mission. However, Huginn marks his first launch from NASA's Kennedy Space Center in Florida, USA, and his inaugural experience with Crew Dragon. Watch the replay of pivotal moments such as the crew's arrival at the Kennedy Space Center on 20 August, lift off, as well as Andreas piloting Crew Dragon on the eleventh overall crewed orbital flight. The journey also showcased special passengers, who served as zero gravity indicators. After approximately X hours, the Crew Dragon approached and autonomously docked with the Space Station, where Andreas and his colleagues were greeted by fellow astronauts. For more about Andreas and his Huginn mission, visit the Huginn mission page. Access the related broadcast quality video material. View the full article

Image: The graceful winding arms of the grand-design spiral galaxy M51 stretch across this image from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope. Unlike the menagerie of weird and wonderful spiral galaxies with ragged or disrupted spiral arms, grand-design spiral galaxies boast prominent, well-developed spiral arms like the ones showcased in this image. This galactic portrait is a composite image that integrates data from Webb’s Near-InfraRed Camera (NIRCam) and the innovative Mid-InfraRed Instrument (MIRI), half of which was contributed by Europe. In this image the dark red regions trace the filamentary warm dust permeating the medium of the galaxy. The red regions show the reprocessed light from complex molecules forming on dust grains, while colours of orange and yellow reveal the regions of ionised gas by the recently formed star clusters. Stellar feedback has a dramatic effect on the medium of the galaxy and create complex network of bright knots as well as cavernous black bubbles. M51 – also known as NGC 5194 or the Whirlpool Galaxy – lies about 27 million light-years away from Earth in the constellation Canes Venatici, and is trapped in a tumultuous relationship with its near neighbour, the dwarf galaxy NGC 5195. The interaction between these two galaxies has made these galactic neighbours one of the better-studied galaxy pairs in the night sky. The gravitational influence of M51’s smaller companion is thought to be partially responsible for the stately nature of the galaxy’s prominent and distinct spiral arms. If you would like to learn more about this squabbling pair of galactic neighbours, you can explore earlier observations of M51 by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope here. This Webb observation of M51 is one of a series of observations collectively titled Feedback in Emerging extrAgalactic Star clusTers, or FEAST. The FEAST observations were designed to shed light on the interplay between stellar feedback and star formation in environments outside of our own galaxy, the Milky Way. Stellar feedback is the term used to describe the outpouring of energy from stars into the environments which form them, and is a crucial process in determining the rates at which stars form. Understanding stellar feedback is vital to building accurate universal models of star formation. The aim of the FEAST observations is to discover and study stellar nurseries in galaxies beyond our own Milky Way. Before Webb became operative, other observatories such as the Atacama Large Millimetre Array in the Chilean desert and Hubble have given us a glimpse of star formation either at the onset (tracing the dense gas and dust clouds where stars will form) or after the stars have destroyed with their energy their natal gas and dust clouds. Webb is opening a new window into the early stages of star formation and stellar light, as well as the energy reprocessing of gas and dust. Scientists are seeing star clusters emerging from their natal cloud in galaxies beyond our local group for the first time. They will also be able to measure how long it takes for these stars to pollute with newly formed metals and to clean out the gas (these time scales are different from galaxy to galaxy). By studying these processes, we will better understand how the star formation cycle and metal enrichment are regulated within galaxies as well as what are the time scales for planets and brown dwarfs to form. Once dust and gas is removed from the newly formed stars, there is no material left to form planets. [Image Description: A large spiral galaxy takes up the entirety of the image. The core is mostly bright white, but there are also swirling, detailed structures that resemble water circling a drain. There is white and pale blue light that emanates from stars and dust at the core’s centre, but it is tightly limited to the core. The rings feature colours of deep red and orange and highlight filaments of dust around cavernous black bubbles.] View the full article

Image: Andreas Mogensen enters the Space Station View the full article

Dropcoal, short for Drop Coalescence, is a research project that studies how droplets form in space and on Earth. The results will grant insights into raindrop and cloud formation, fuel combustion and interactions between materials, all with broad implications for industry and academy. They also play a crucial role in administering medicine to astronauts during lengthy and far-reaching space missions. View the full article

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