All articles tagged with #esa
ESA’s Mars Express captured new, low-altitude imagery of Schiaparelli Crater — one of Mars’ largest impact craters — using its High Resolution Stereo Camera to collect multi-angle, four-color data and build 3D maps of the southern highlands, highlighting ancient water-formed terrain. The site is also famous as the location where Mark Watney was stranded in The Martian and shares its name with ESA’s 2016 Schiaparelli lander.
Sophie Adenot became the first French woman to spacewalk on Aug. 18, 2026, joining Anil Menon for EVA 97 to remove a failed Space-to-Ground antenna and install a replacement on the ISS’s Z1 truss. The pair completed the removal but ran out of time to finish the install because disconnecting cables and loosening bolts took longer than expected. Mission Control redirected the plan to secure the existing hardware and defer the antenna installation to a second spacewalk scheduled for Aug. 25. A working antenna continues to carry the data link in the meantime, illustrating how routine maintenance in space can consume more time than margins allow.
Orbiting spacecraft captured stunning views of the Aug. 12 total solar eclipse: NASA astronaut Jessica Meir photographed the Moon moving across the Sun from the ISS with about 18% sun coverage; ESA’s Proba-3 mission recorded a rare double eclipse using its occulter and coronagraph; ESA’s MTG-I1 imager captured the Moon’s shadow darkening Earth; NOAA’s GOES-19 also imaged the event, with Space.com featuring a photo roundup of additional views.
ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot will become France's first woman to spacewalk outside the ISS, partnering with NASA's Anil Menon for a roughly 6.5‑hour EVA to replace a space-to-ground antenna critical for communications; coverage begins Aug. 18 at 7 a.m. EDT on Space.com, and the outing marks the 282nd ISS spacewalk in history.
A rare sunset total solar eclipse will be visible across Europe, with the path of totality passing Iceland, northern Spain, and a small corner of Portugal (totality lasting about two minutes in some spots); Greenland and northern Russia will experience the longest durations. A partial eclipse will sweep over the northern US, Canada, much of Europe and northwestern Africa. NASA and the European Space Agency will host live broadcasts starting around 1:15 PM ET, and viewers should wear certified eclipse glasses. If wildfire smoke lingers, it may alter the corona’s visibility but could also deepen sun color for photography. After totality, observers may catch the Perseids meteor shower; the article also notes a future total eclipse on August 2, 2027 across southern Spain, Gibraltar, and nearby regions.
The European Space Agency is funding Siloton to build a compact, self-administered retinal scanner powered by quantum photonics to monitor spaceflight-associated neuro-ocular syndrome (SANS) on long missions, enabling more frequent eye checks without ground support; while power, mounting, and head-stabilization present challenges, the tech could improve astronauts’ ocular health data and spill over to terrestrial eye care.
The head of the European Space Agency warns Europe will face a shortage of homegrown rocket launchers around 2030 as demand for launches—driven by satellite constellations like Iris², Galileo and Copernicus, plus defence needs—outpaces Europe’s current capabilities. ESA is exploring expanded production for Ariane 6 (targeting about 15 launches per year instead of the current nine–ten) and Vega-C, and considering procurement and funding reforms to bridge the gap ahead of the 2030s and beyond, amid competition from SpaceX and China.
Europe’s Copernicus Browser now includes a wildfire visualization layer for Sentinel-2 data, letting users see active fires and burned areas with high-resolution 10-meter imagery. The feature, based on a JavaScript script by Pierre Markuse, went live Aug. 4 after ESA scientists helped integrate it. NASA’s FIRMS remains available for global fire mapping at coarser resolutions, but Sentinel-2 offers more detail and updates every few days, aiding wildfire monitoring during an intense season.
Europe’s new heavy-lift rocket Ariane 6 completed its inaugural flight VA262 on July 9, 2024, showcasing an upgraded main stage, a choice of two or four boosters, and a restartable upper stage with an end-of-mission deorbit—delivering greater efficiency and multi-orbit capability at lower cost for European access to space. An image tied to a La Poste stamp set in French Guiana is noted.
NASA and ESA said their Madrid-area Deep Space Network facilities largely escaped major damage from wildfires that forced evacuations; the Madrid Deep Space Communications Complex (MDSCC) was evacuated on July 24 with initial inspections showing damage mainly to pavement and vegetation and no significant harm to antennas or buildings, while Canberra and Goldstone have assumed DSN operations. ESA’s Cerberos ground station near Madrid also appears unharmed, though access is limited, and Goldstone’s 70-meter antenna remains out of service until 2028 due to prior damage. The fires have prompted large-scale evacuations in Spain and France.
On 12 August 2026, a total solar eclipse will be visible from northern Spain; ESA, the City of León and the University of León are hosting a free public event at the Palacio de Exposiciones y Congresos de León with daytime workshops, talks and live observations, followed by an evening program guiding visitors through totality, with free eclipse glasses (while supplies last) and an ESA live broadcast for those unable to attend.
Artemis II astronauts Reid Wiseman, Victor Glover, Christina Koch, and Jeremy Hansen visited ESA’s ESTEC in the Netherlands to meet the European Service Module team, tour facilities and labs, and receive a Program Award; they will also visit Airbus in Bremen and Thales Alenia Space in Turin as part of ongoing post-flight engagements.
A 14-year-old who asked NASA for a work placement ended up cleaning a space toilet at Leicester’s National Space Centre. Now Claire Parfitt is the Mars Exploration Study Lead at the European Space Agency, coordinating international efforts through the International Mars Exploration Working Group and shaping studies and technology for future crewed Mars missions, including the ExoMars Rosalind Franklin rover.
Stop Killing Games lobbied California’s AB 1921 to require publishers to warn 60 days before ending official server support and offer remedies such as offline modes or refunds; the bill stalled in the Senate amid ESA claims that private Minecraft/Call of Duty servers constitute piracy, a claim SKG rejects. EU efforts similarly stalled. With funding and lobbying constraints cited, SKG plans more court challenges and a recruitment drive to push for post-license play protections and counter publishers’ arguments in hearings across other states.
During a California Senate committee hearing on AB 1921 (Protect Our Games Act), ESA VP Jennifer Gibbons claimed Minecraft servers are illegal and not affiliated with Microsoft, arguing against the bill’s requirements on refunds and server deprecation; she labeled community-hosted servers as piracy, despite Mojang/Microsoft promoting and supporting such servers. The bill did not pass the State Senate, and proponents plan amendments moving forward.