Photos: Gaia Spacecraft to Map Milky Way Galaxy

The European Space Agency’s Gaia spacecraft will create a three-dimensional map of the Milky Way, revealing information about its composition, formation and evolution. The mission will measure the position for about one billion stars in our galaxy and local group, with radial velocity measurements for the brightest 150 million objects. Gaia will launch in 2013 on a five-year mission, with a possible one-year extension. (This gallery was updated with new images on Nov. 15, 2016).

This all-sky view of the stars in our Milky Way galaxy, as well as neighboring galaxies, take center stage in this sky map by the European Space Agency’s Gaia satellite during its first year of operation.

An annotated version of Gaia’s first map of all of the stars in and around the Milky Way galaxy.

The Gaia Deployable Sunshield Assembly (DSA) is seen during deployment testing in the S1B integration building at Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, on October 10, 2013.

This diagram shows how ESA’s Gaia spacecraft will arrive at in orbit around the L2 Lagragian point.

The Gaia Deployable Sunshield Assembly (DSA) during deployment testing in the S1B integration building at Europe’s spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, on 10 October 2013.

Gaia must be transported in the Conteneur Charge Utile 3 (CCU3). This container is effectively a self-contained cleanroom.

A Soyuz-Fregat rocket carrying the European Space Agency’s galaxy-mapping Gaia probe launches from French Guiana on Dec. 19, 2013.

Both Gaia transponders have been re-integrated in the spacecraft, re-connected, and functionally verified. After five days of intensive testing, all results were positive, allowing the re-installation of the solar array panels and of the multilayer insulation (MLI) blankets, which had to be removed for operator access. Kevin Downes, Astrium AIT mechanical engineer, is seen almost inside the Gaia spacecraft.

In late August 2013, the Gaia spacecraft was unveiled in the clean room at the launch center of the European Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana.

Three Soyuz stages are seen in the integration center MIK. The 3rd stage is in the foreground. The 1st and the 2nd stages are already integrated in the background. The 1st stage is identified by the four lateral conical boosters.

Gaia spacecraft flight model is seen during mass, CoG (Centre of Gravity) and inertia measurements at Intespace, Toulouse, France, March 13, 2013.

Gaia’s payload fairing was designed by Joël Schopfer. It depicts a girl reaching for the Milky Way, with the Gaia spacecraft. The ESA logo is also included.

An artist’s illustration of ESA’s Gaia space observatory in orbit.

This image shows the Gaia star-mapper as it is lowered into position atop the Fregat upper stage for Soyuz. A global space astrometry mission, Gaia will make the largest, most precise three-dimensional map of our galaxy by surveying more than a thousand million stars. Gaia is scheduled for launch on Dec. 19, 2013. This image was released Dec. 13, 2013.

Pictured here is the Soyuz launch vehicle’s Block I third stage being mated to the launcher in the MIK integration building. This building is equipped with two traveling cranes for handling launcher segments, along with a rail system for the movement and integration of the stages. Once the integrated launcher has been checked it will be transferred to the launch pad where the Gaia satellite and the Fregat upper stage will be installed. This image was released Dec. 13, 2013.

The Gaia spacecraft is positioned inside the Soyuz fairing, in preparation for the Dec. 19 2013 launch. The spacecraft was attached to the vehicle adapter before being installed in the fairing. This image was released Dec. 13, 2013.

This image is an artist’s concept of Ariane 6. The image was released Dec. 15, 2013.

Soyuz VS06 was transferred to the launch zone on Dec. 14, 2013. The vehicle was rolled out horizontally on its erector from the preparation building to the launch zone and then raised into the vertical position. The image was released Dec. 15, 2013.

Soyuz VS06 was rolled out horizontally on its erector from the preparation building to the launch zone and then raised into the vertical position on Dec. 14, 2013. The image was released Dec. 15, 2013.

Soyuz VS06 was rolled out horizontally on its erector from the preparation building to the launch zone and then raised into the vertical position on Dec. 14, 2013. The image was released Dec. 15, 2013.

The Soyuz VS06 upper composite, Gaia space observatory, was transferred to the pad and installed inside the mobile gantry on Dec. 14, 2013. The image was released Dec. 15, 2013.

This image shows the Soyuz VS06 upper composite, Gaia space observatory, transferred to the pad and installed inside the mobile gantry on Dec. 14, 2013. The image was released Dec. 15, 2013.

This image shows the Soyuz VS06 upper composite, Gaia space observatory, transferred to the pad and installed inside the mobile gantry on Dec. 14, 2013. The image was released Dec. 15, 2013.

A Soyuz-Fregat rocket carrying the European Space Agency’s galaxy-mapping Gaia probe launches from French Guiana on Dec. 19, 2013.