Space News & Blog Articles

Tune into the SpaceZE News Network to stay updated on industry news from around the world.

Week in images: 25-29 September 2023

Week in images: 25-29 September 2023

Continue reading
  145 Hits

Earth from Space: Southern Patagonian Ice Field

Image: Part of the Southern Patagonian Ice Field with its white glaciers and aquamarine lakes is featured in this Copernicus Sentinel-2 image from 10 January 2023.

  138 Hits

Material matters

The Biofilms study continues its cosmic quest to combat bacterial contamination. With three experiments aboard the International Space Station, it's on a mission to improve antimicrobial technology, benefitting astronauts and people on Earth alike.

  137 Hits

Hera takes wing

Image: Hera takes wing

  136 Hits

Vega's fuel-free CubeSats to keep formation with wings

Spain’s trio of ANSER CubeSats, due to fly on Europe’s next Vega launcher, will fly like a flock of birds in orbit – in more ways than one. Keeping in formation by following their leader, the three shoebox-sized satellite will image Iberian waters as if they are a single standard-sized mission. And they will unfurl wing-like flaps to maintain their relative positions, surfing on the scanty airflow at the top of Earth’s atmosphere.

  105 Hits

Andreas Mogensen becomes International Space Station commander

Video: 00:03:20

ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen became commander of the International Space Station (ISS) on September 26, 2023, in a traditional ceremony in which the departing commander, Sergey Prokopyev, handed over the symbolic key of the Space Station. Mogensen is the sixth European to take on the role of ISS commander.

Continue reading
  91 Hits

Seeking Euclid's hidden stars: commissioning looks up

  155 Hits

The first steps of the Huginn mission

Video: 00:05:46

ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen has begun his Huginn mission, turning the International Space Station into his home and workplace. After piloting on Crew Dragon Endurance as the first non-US pilot, Andreas has started performing European experiments and technology demonstrations with many more to come throughout the mission.

  102 Hits

Turning up gravity for space fungi study

Fungi in space have been a plot point in Star Trek: Discovery, but they are also a very real problem for astronauts and space stations. United Nations co-sponsored testing by a team from Macau in China subjected fungi to hypergravity with ESA’s fast-spinning centrifuge.

  127 Hits

Andreas Mogensen: Commander of the International Space Station

ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen will become the commander of the International Space Station, the sixth European to take the role. Tune in to ESA WebTV channel 2 tomorrow, 26 September at 15:40 CEST (14:40 BST) to watch the ceremony when Andreas becomes the commander.

  154 Hits

Earth from Space: Scorched Rhodes

Image: This summer, Europe experienced a relentless heatwave, fuelling wildfires in several countries. This Copernicus Sentinel-1 image shows the burn scars left by fires on the Greek island of Rhodes.

  190 Hits

Webb finds carbon source on surface of Jupiter’s moon Europa

Jupiter’s moon Europa is one of a handful of worlds in our Solar System that could potentially harbour conditions suitable for life. Previous research has shown that beneath its water-ice crust lies a salty ocean of liquid water with a rocky seafloor. However, planetary scientists had not confirmed whether or not that ocean contained the chemicals needed for life, particularly carbon.

  111 Hits

ESA works with EU on secure connectivity

Keeping European citizens safe from cyberattacks that can lead to the disruption of essential supplies – such as power, water and the flow of crucial information – is vital in today’s increasingly digital world. ESA and the European Commission have today signed an agreement to use space to help keep information secure.

  114 Hits

ESA Open Days 2023: connecting space enthusiasts across Europe

More than 15 000 visitors are getting ready to pass through ESA's gateways during ESA Open Days 2023. This Europe-wide series of events promises to connect space enthusiasts, bringing space closer to them than ever before. Unforgettable days of discoveries, inspiration, and scientific divulgation await thousands of European citizens, who are eagerly gearing up for a fantastic journey through the wonders of space.

  98 Hits

First view of OSIRIS-REx returning with asteroid sample

Image:

Is it a spacecraft? An asteroid? Well, both. This small central speck is the first image of a spacecraft on its way home, carrying with it a sample from an asteroid hundreds-of-millions, if-not-billions-of-years old. The spacecraft is NASA’s OSIRIS-REx, the asteroid is Bennu.

Continue reading
  96 Hits

Firefoxes and whale spouts light up Earth's shield

Video: 00:00:56

Did you know, the Northern lights or Aurora Borealis are created when the mythical Finnish ‘Firefox’ runs so quickly across the snow that its tail causes sparks to fly into the night sky? At least, that’s one of the stories that has been told in Finland about this beautiful phenomenon. Another that we love comes from the Sámi people of Finnish Lapland (among others), who describe them as plumes of water ejected by whales.

Continue reading
  118 Hits

ESA Open Day in the framework of European Researchers’ Night

ESA will open its doors to members of the public at its Earth Observation centre in Frascati, near Rome, Italy, on 29 September, as part of its annual open day.

  94 Hits

Trio of Sentinel satellites map methane super-emitters

In the quest to address climate change and reduce greenhouse gas emissions, detecting methane leaks – a potent contributor to global warming – has become increasingly vital. Researchers are harnessing the capabilities of cutting-edge satellite technology to monitor these leaks from space.

  142 Hits

Moon crew visits European powerhouse

Image: From left: the Artemis II astronauts, Christina Koch, Jeremy Hansen, Victor Glover, and Reid Wiseman, visited the European Service Module (ESM) assembly hall at Airbus in Bremen, Germany, last week.

  100 Hits

Juice: why’s it taking sooo long

  112 Hits

SpaceTeamEurope, all united to launch Ariane 6

Video: 00:09:37

The successful last Ariane 6 launch system combined tests HFT-3, at the German Aerospace Center in Lampoldshausen; and CTLO1-C, at Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana, show the strength of European industrial and institutional collaboration. The “Space Team Europe” gets one step closer to the Ariane 6 first flight.

  161 Hits

SpaceZE.com