Today, Europe relies on its international partners to bring its cargo and crew to space via a bartering system. In the past, ESA provided the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), which has delivered over 30 000 kg of cargo to the International Space Station between 2008 and 2015; this, as well as other contributions including Columbus, the European laboratory on the Station, enabled European astronauts to fly regularly to low-Earth orbit. The ATV's design is the basis for the European Service Module (ESM), which propels the crewed Orion spacecraft during NASA's Artemis missions; the multiple ESMs required for the Artemis missions, as well as significant contributions to the Gateway will support the acquisition of current and future European astronaut flights and more.