In a world first, ESA and Telesat have successfully connected a Low Earth Orbit (LEO) satellite to the ground using 5G Non-Terrestrial Network (NTN) technology in the Ka-band frequency range, marking a crucial step towards making space-based connections as simple as using a mobile phone.

This year has been a whirlwind of fascinating Earth observation stories, from dramatic volcanic eruptions to Saharan dust plumes to epic meteorite craters. Let’s dive into some of the most memorable highlights from 2024.

For the first group of ESA’s Astronaut Reserve, two intensive months of Astronaut Reserve Training (ART) have come to a close. During this initial training phase, members of the ESA Astronaut Reserve Sara García Alonso  from Spain,  Andrea Patassa  from Italy,  Arnaud Prost  from France,  Amelie Schoenenwald  from Germany, and  Aleš Svoboda  from Czechia were introduced to essential skills required for future space exploration and scientific research.

Don’t miss the final ESA Impact of the year!

Your interactive gateway to the most captivating stories and stunning visuals from ESA.

Paris, France (SPX) Dec 17, 2024
New findings from the NASA/ESA/CSA James Webb Space Telescope challenge our understanding of planet formation by confirming a longstanding puzzle initially uncovered by the Hubble Space Telescope over two decades ago. The discovery highlights that planet-forming discs persisted far longer in the Universe's early days, even in conditions once deemed inhospitable for planet growth. In 2003,

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 17, 2024
The Atacama Large Millimeter/submillimeter Array (ALMA) has uncovered critical details about planetary system formation by detecting a dense concentration of dust grains outside the orbits of two known planets in the protoplanetary disk surrounding the young star PDS 70. These findings, led by Kiyoaki Doi, a researcher at the Max Planck Institute for Astronomy and former Ph.D. student at the Nat

Tokyo, Japan (SPX) Dec 17, 2024
ispace, inc. (ispace) (TOKYO: 9348), a global leader in lunar exploration, and Magna Petra, a pioneering company focused on the extraction and return of helium-3 isotopes from the Moon, have signed a memorandum of understanding to advance sustainable resource exploration on the lunar surface. The agreement outlines plans for both companies to contribute to the growth of the lunar economy b

Sydney, Australia (SPX) Dec 17, 2024
Swinburne University of Technology has been chosen to provide essential technology for a groundbreaking national mission: Australia's first lunar rover. As part of the $42 million Australian Space Agency project, the ELO2 Consortium will design, build, and operate the Australian-made rover, "Roo-ver," on the Moon's surface. Swinburne's Space Technology and Industry Institute (STII) will pl

Los Angeles CA (SPX) Dec 17, 2024
T-Mobile has launched registration for its beta program of T-Mobile Starlink, a new direct-to-cell satellite service set to eliminate cellular dead zones by covering the 500,000 square miles in the U.S. without ground-based network access. The beta program follows recent FCC approval and marks a key step in integrating Starlink's satellite technology with T-Mobile's terrestrial network. "T