European Space Agency

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A Slow Trip To A Hot Planet: Spacecraft Launches For Mission To Mercury

11:27pm October 19, 2018

by Joe Palca

The European Space Agency's BepiColombo will take seven years to reach the innermost planet in our solar system, where temperatures at the surface can reach 800 degrees Fahrenheit.

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This is the south polar cap of Mars as it appeared to the Mars Orbiter Camera on the Mars Global Surveyor on April 17, 2000. An underground lake was found near here.

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Underground Lake Found On Mars Beneath A Mile Of Ice

5:30pm July 25, 2018

by Joe Palca

Scientists say they've found what appears to be a briny lake near the south pole on Mars. It's possible that some kind of microbial life once lived in the lake.

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A NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope image of the Lagoon Nebula, which is about 4,000 light-years away. It was taken by Hubble's Wide Field Camera 3 in February. The image was released to celebrate the 28th anniversary of Hubble.

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It's the Hubble Space Telescope's Birthday. Enjoy Amazing Images Of The Lagoon Nebula

5:40pm April 20, 2018

by Vanessa Romo

This month marks the Hubble Space Telescope's 28 years in space, and as a gift to us earthlings, NASA and the European Space Agency issued photos of colorful, explosive beauty.

Mars Lander May Be Missing, But A Second Spacecraft Is Still Humming Along

3:25pm October 20, 2016

by Rae Ellen Bichell

As scientists try to figure out what happened to the Schiaparelli lander, which may have crash-landed, a craft known as the Trace Gas Orbiter is orbiting the red planet in search of signs of life.

A visualization shows what the European Space Agency hopes Schiaparelli's Mars landing looks like. The probe will be making its six-minute descent through the atmosphere on Wednesday.

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Scientists Wait To See If Probe Successfully Landed On Mars

3:57pm October 19, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

The Schiaparelli probe was supposed to make a six-minute descent through the red planet's atmosphere and make a controlled landing on the surface. Scientists are waiting for word.

Rosetta's mission control specialists at the European Space Operations Center in Darmstadt, Germany, were jubilant on Jan. 20, 2014, after getting back the first signals that their mission's probe had "woken up" on the comet's surface.

Scientists To Bid A Bittersweet Farewell To Rosetta, The Comet Chaser

10:24pm September 29, 2016

by Nell Greenfieldboyce

To cap its 12-year scientific voyage, the Rosetta spacecraft will take a final plunge Friday. Scientists will signal Rosetta to crash into the surface of a comet — and gather data all the way down.

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Photos taken on Friday, from more than a mile and a half from the comet, show Philae's three-foot-wide body and two of its three legs. The April 2015 image on the top right shows the comet overall, with the approximate location of Philae marked with a red

Silent, But Not Lost: Philae Lander's Final Resting Place Located On Comet

1:12pm September 05, 2016

by Camila Domonoske

The lander was the first to ever set down on a comet — but couldn't get enough sunlight to recharge its batteries, and went into hibernation. New images show Philae stuck in a crack.

The Joint European Torus, a European fusion project in the U.K., gets most of its funding from the EU. Brexit may change that, and the even larger ITER fusion project.

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Brexit's Impact Stretches From Deep Space To Nuclear Fusion

1:37pm June 29, 2016

by Geoff Brumfiel

Scientists are worried about how Britain's departure from the European Union would hurt the continent's mega-projects and its researchers. Scientific collaboration "should know no borders," says one.

This new image from the largest planet in the Solar System, Jupiter, was made during the Outer Planet Atmospheres Legacy (OPAL) program.

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New Hubble Images Show Jupiter's Great Red Spot Is Still Shrinking

1:44pm October 14, 2015

by Eyder Peralta

But, using images from the Hubble Space Telescope, scientists have learned the great storm is putting up a fight because it is now shrinking at a slower rate.

European Space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti of Italy checks her Sokol pressure suit aboard the International Space Station. Cristoforetti, who set an endurance record, is among three astronauts who returned on Thursday.

Trio Of Astronauts Return To Earth After Record-Breaking ISS Mission

11:45am June 11, 2015

by Scott Neuman

Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti surpassed a space endurance record for a female spacefarer.