Tag Archives | ESA

Four Galileo satellites

New Galileo satellites operational after successful in-orbit testing

The two new Galileo satellites launched in April have entered service, completing the second of three constellation planes. With every addition to the constellation, the precision, availability and robustness of the Galileo signal is improved. The next launch is planned in the coming weeks and the remaining six Galileo First Generation satellites will join the […]

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BepiColombo's best images yet highlight fourth Mercury flyby

The ESA/JAXA BepiColombo mission has successfully completed its fourth of six gravity assist flybys at Mercury, capturing images of two special impact craters as it uses the little planet’s gravity to steer itself on course to enter orbit around Mercury in November 2026. The closest approach took place at 23:48 CEST (21:48 UTC) on 4 […]

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Sentinel-2C launch highlights

Video: 00:14:09 The Copernicus Sentinel-2C satellite lifted off on 5 September at 03:50 CEST (4 September 22:50 local time) aboard the last Vega rocket, flight VV24, from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. Sentinel-2C will continue the legacy of delivering high-resolution data that are essential to Copernicus – the Earth observation component of the EU Space […]

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Sentinel-2C joins the Copernicus family in orbit

The third Copernicus Sentinel-2 satellite launched today aboard the final Vega rocket from Europe’s Spaceport in French Guiana. Sentinel-2C will continue providing high-resolution data that is essential to Copernicus – Europe’s world leading Earth observation programme. Sentinel-2C launched into orbit on 5 September at 03:50 CEST (4 September 22:50 local time) and separated from the […]

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Juice's flight through Earth's radiation belts

Image: During its recent flyby of Earth , ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice ) travelled through the zones of charged particles that surround our planet. These two zones are known as the Van Allen radiation belts . The inner belt is mostly full of energetic protons, and the outer belt is mostly full of energetic electrons. The region between the two belts is mostly empty.  The high levels of radiation in […]

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Opportunities with ESA at Big Science Business Forum 2024

ESA is part of the Big Science Business Forum 2024 event on 1–4 October in Trieste, Italy. This is where industry and Europe’s leading science organisations, research infrastructures and their collaborators will meet to inform, network and discuss business opportunities in a market valued at nearly €10 billion annually. To source

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Watch Sentinel-2C launch live on the final Vega rocket

The Copernicus Sentinel-2C satellite is ready for liftoff! Tune in to ESA WebTV on 4 September from 03:30 CEST to watch the satellite soar into space on the last Vega rocket to be launched from Europe’s Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana. Sentinel-2C is scheduled to liftoff at 03:50 CEST. To source

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Fourth Mercury flyby begins BepiColombo’s new trajectory

Teams from across ESA and industry have worked continuously over the past four months to overcome a glitch that prevented BepiColombo’s thrusters from operating at full power . The ESA/JAXA mission is still on track, with a new trajectory that will take it just 165 km from Mercury’s surface on Wednesday. Taking BepiColombo closer to […]

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