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Watch the replay of ESA's start-of-the-year press briefing looking ahead to 2024. Director General Josef Aschbacher presents this year's key milestones from ESA HQ in Paris: in 2024, Europe will regain its autonomous access to space, with the inaugural flight of the heavy-lift launcher Ariane 6 from Europe's Spaceport in French Guiana. Hear more about Hera, the planetary defence mission which will be launched at the end of 2024 and EarthCARE, ESA’s Earth observation mission studying the role that clouds and aerosols play in reflecting solar radiation. Updates are also provided on how commercial European space companies

ESA won the Best Merchandise award at Space Creator Day 2023, a significant recognition by a community of space enthusiasts. The award highlights ESA’s efforts to promote its activities through innovative and attractive designs that appeal to the public.

Image: Eyes on the stars

ESA plans to implement a circular economy in space by 2050. To achieve this, we are looking for creative solutions to contribute to greater sustainability in space activities.

Baltimore MD (SPX) Jan 10, 2024
Astronomers using NASA's James Webb Space Telescope have found a brown dwarf (an object more massive than Jupiter but smaller than a star) with infrared emission from methane, likely due to energy in its upper atmosphere. This is an unexpected discovery because the brown dwarf, W1935, is cold and lacks a host star; therefore, there is no obvious source for the upper atmosphere energy. The team s

Pasadena CA (JPL) Jan 10, 2024
Earth planning date: Monday, January 8, 2024: With a successful bump backwards over the weekend, Curiosity is now positioned to execute contact science on a flat block of dark-toned bedrock in its workspace and continue investigating the composition and texture of the dark bands we've been observing from orbit. Our two-sol plan starts with a DAN passive, followed by brushing of the contact scien

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Jan 10, 2024
As Sidus Space (NASDAQ: SIDU) gears up for the launch of its ambitious satellite constellation, the company has announced achieving several critical milestones in both Artificial Intelligence (AI) and hardware, setting the stage for the March 2024 launch of LizzieSat-1. This satellite is poised to be a part of the SpaceX Transporter-10 mission, slated to take off from the Vandenberg Space Force

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jan 09, 2024
Rocket Lab USA has recently embarked on a significant venture, having been selected by the Space Development Agency (SDA) for a major project. The company is now under contract to design and build 18 Tranche 2 Transport Layer-Beta Data Transport Satellites (T2TL - Beta), marking a pivotal moment in its expansion as a prime contractor in satellite technology. The firm-fixed price agreement

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Jan 10, 2024
India's ambitious journey into solar exploration has achieved a significant milestone. The Indian Space Research Organisation's (ISRO) maiden solar mission, Aditya-L1, has successfully reached its designated orbit in space, enabling continuous observation of the Sun. This achievement marks a critical step in India's expanding space exploration capabilities. Launched in early September last

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Jan 09, 2024
Aurora Flight Sciences has been chosen by the Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency (DARPA) to construct a groundbreaking full-scale X-plane. This aircraft, named the X-65, will serve as a technology demonstrator within the Control of Revolutionary Aircraft with Novel Effectors (CRANE) program. This initiative marks a significant shift in the realm of aircraft design, moving away from tradit