Space News & Blog Articles

Dublin, the capital and largest city of Ireland, is featured in this image captured by Copernicus Sentinel-2.

Researchers have found evidence for the existence of a new type of planet they have called a “water world,” where water makes up a large fraction of the entire planet. These worlds, discovered in a planetary system 218 light-years away, are unlike any planets in our Solar System.

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Watch the replay of the media session following the 314th ESA Council meeting which takes place on 14 and 15 December in Paris. ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher and ESA Council Chair Anna Rathsman share the outcome of this meeting. Updates on the outcomes of CM22 and the next implementation steps are provided to the media.

ESA and OHB have signed a contract to move forward with the design and construction of ESA’s ambitious Comet Interceptor spacecraft, planned for launch in 2029.

ESA’s wind mission continues to shine as engineers have worked their Christmas magic. With a switch back to its original laser, Aeolus is now shining more than twice as brightly with its best ever performance – just in time for the holidays.

As of today, ESA has appointed two new Directors - the Director of Science and the Director for Technology, Engineering and Quality. ESA Council approved the Director General’s proposal to appoint the new Directors at its meeting on 15 December 2022.

Image: Tomorrow’s technology centre

The Meteosat Third Generation Imager satellite, set to revolutionise short-term weather forecasting in Europe, lifted off on an Ariane 5 rocket at 21:30 CET (17:30 local time in Kourou) on 13 December from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. 

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Watch the replay the MTG-I1 launch coverage. The video includes streaming of the event at ESA’s ESTEC establishment in the Netherlands and footage of liftoff from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

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The first Meteosat Third Generation Imager (MTG-I1) satellite lifted off on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana on 13 December at 21:30 CET.

Image: Europe’s all-new weather satellite takes to the skies

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The uncrewed Artemis I test flight saw Orion travel around the Moon and farther than any spacecraft designed to carry humans and return them to Earth. Artemis is the international lunar exploration programme that is taking humankind to the Moon. This first mission provided a first test of both NASA’s Space Launch System (SLS) and the Orion moonship that was propelled by the European Service Module’s 33 engines beyond the Moon and into deep space. Future European Service Modules will provide electricity, propulsion and cabin thermal control for astronauts on lunar missions as well as breathable atmosphere and drinking water.

With liftoff set for today at 21:30 CET, the Ariane 5 rocket carrying the first Meteosat Third Generation Imager, MTG-I1, satellite is poised patiently on the launch pad at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana while the final checks are being carried out. Once in geostationary orbit, 36,000 km above the equator, this new satellite is set to herald a new era for meteorology.

Meteosat Third Generation

ESA Highlights: the best of ESA in 2022

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The animation shows the full launch sequence for the first Meteosat Third Generation Imager (MTG-I1) satellite. MTG-I1 launches on an Ariane 5 rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

On 13 December, the first of a new generation of satellites designed to revolutionise weather forecasting in Europe will take to the skies. ESA and the European Organisation for the Exploitation of Meteorological Satellites (Eumetsat) invite you to follow the live coverage for the launch of the first Meteosat Third Generation satellite starting from 19:40 CET on ESA Web TV.

Tucked away in the Fucino Valley, in central Italy, lies the Fucino Space Centre, where Telespazio will manage the early orbit activities of the Meteosat Third Generation Imager, set to launch on 13 December from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana.

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NASA’s Orion spacecraft, powered by ESA’s European Service Module, shares a stunning new take on ‘Earth rise’ following the return powered flyby of the Moon.