ESA - European Space Agency

As the European Space Agency (ESA) recruits its first astronauts in over 10 years, ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano shares his journey to spaceflight and some of the qualities he's observed in his fellow space explorers.  Luca has now flown two six-month missions to the International Space Station, but did he always want to be an astronaut? What do astronauts do when they're not in space? And what adv...

Space may seem vast, but the orbits around Earth in which satellites reside are a limited natural resource. However, since the beginning of the space age, millions of debris fragments have been created which now threaten any spacecraft that crosses their path. So what can we do to protect these vulnerable regions for future generations? Find out in episode #9 of the ESA-UN space debris series, wit...

To mark the opening of the European Space Agency's first astronaut selection in over a decade, we embark on a journey into the wonderful world of space careers. In this initial episode, ESA Director of Human and Robotic Exploration David Parker introduces the ESA astronaut selection and the qualities ESA is looking for in its new recruits. Host Ally Koehler asks about the newly introduced 'Parastr...

Humans in space have a lot to contend with, and for those orbiting in low-Earth orbit, space debris is a real concern. So what's the risk to astronauts on-board the International Space Station? How safe are they when they perform a space walk, and what are the "clanking" sounds they report hearing? Find out in episode 8 of the ESA-UNOOSA space debris podcast with Vitali Braun and Ottavia Pesce. Wh...

Debris in orbit varies from millions of millimetre-sized particles to thousands of much larger objects like defunct satellites and rocket parts. As such the damage debris can cause varies from a gradual degradation of satellite parts over time to immediate and total destruction. Find out about the damage debris can do - including leading to the "Kessler syndrome" - in episode #7 of the ESA-UN spac...

The millions of fragments of debris in orbit today are the direct result of 'fragmentation events' in the past. But how do we know what caused the 550 known, debris-creating events to date? And what can we learn from them? In this podcast, episode 6 in the ESA-UN space debris series, Vitali Braun and Jorge del Rio Vera discuss the various past events that have lead to today's debris environment, a...

The addition of ESA's Columbus laboratory, and the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) programme, changed the shape of European participation on the International Space Station. But its launch came at a challenging time for human spaceflight. In this episode ESA astronaut Frank De Winne and former ESA International Space Station programme manager Bernardo Patti talk about Columbus' launch on Space Sh...

What goes up, nearly always comes back down. Roughly 100 satellites and rocket bodies reentered Earth's atmosphere every year in the last decade. It might sound scary, but atmospheric reentries are nothing to be worried about - in fact they are a fundamental tool in minimising the creation of space debris and ensuring a sustainable future in space. In this podcast, episode #5 in the ESA-UN space d...

Since the beginning of the space age, with the launch of Sputnik in 1957, we have launched thousands of rockets carrying more than ten thousand satellites into space. In recent years, the number of objects launched has dramatically increased, as well as the types of missions being flown. In this podcast, episode #4 in the ESA-UNOOSA space debris series, Ian Freeman and Francesca Letizia discuss wh...

Space might seem an empty, vast expanse, but satellites in Earth's orbit face the constant risk of collision - with other satellites and rockets, dead or alive, or with fragments of their debris. It is now routine for operators of spacecraft in busy highways to divert their mission out of harms way. In fact at ESA, each mission flown performs on average two 'collision avoidance manoeuvres' per yea...

Our planet's atmosphere gradually slows down satellites in orbit and brings them back down to Earth. However, depending on their altitude, this process can take an extremely long time. Had the dinosaurs launched a satellite into the furthest geostationary orbit, it would still be up there today. So, what do we do with spacecraft once they reach the end of their lives? In this podcast, episode #2 i...

Satellites in orbit share near-Earth space with millions of fast-moving and dangerous debris objects. Tim Flohrer, Head of ESA's Space Debris Office, and Nathalie Ricard, Scientific Officer at the UN Office for Outer Space Affairs (UNOOSA), discuss the scale of the debris problem, asking what are our satellites are up against? While you listen, check out the corresponding ESA-UN infographic that i...

In this episode, hosts Ally Koehler and Stephen Ennis take a look at some of the post-SpaceLab ESA projects that never quite made it, before entering the International Space Station era with guests Philippe Berthe, Frank De Winne, and Alan Thirkettle. Philippe is ESA project manager for the European Service Modules that will power NASA's Orion spacecraft on its mission around – and to – the Moon....

ESA Director General Jan Wörner and NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine sit down with hosts Ally Koehler and Stephen Ennis to talk about collaboration and the future of space exploration – including a new space station around the Moon. This episode was recorded just ahead of the 20 year anniversary of humans living and working on the International Space Station on 2 November 2020. Please note, ther...

In this episode of our ESA Explores Time and Space series we chat with the first ESA astronaut to fly to space, physicist Ulf Merbold. Ulf flew on the 9th flight of NASA's Space Shuttle programme and the first flight of European-built Spacelab in 1983. As the first west German to fly to space, he talks us through his experiences – including his relationship with the late Sigmund Jähn, what life wa...

GO/NOGO rollcall conducted at ESA's ESOC Mission Control centre, Darmstadt, Germany, on 21 Nov 2020, some 1.5 hours before liftoff of Sentinel-6. The Earth observation spacecraft from the EU’s Copernicus programme will launch on a Space X Falcon 9 rocket at 17:17 GMT (18:17 CET) from Vandenberg Air Force Base in California, US, on Saturday, 21 November. Image credit ESA/P Shlyaev

(Voice of Josef Aschbacher, Director of Earth Observation Programmes)

(Voice of Guido Levrini, Copernicus Space Segment Programme Manager)

(Voice of Craig Donlon, Copernicus Sentinel-6 Mission Scientist)

(Voice of Craig Donlon, Copernicus Sentinel-6 Mission Scientist)

How is Sentinel-6 different compared to earlier altimetry missions? by European Space Agency

(Voice of Pierrik Vuilleumier, Copernicus Sentinel-6 Project Manager)

(Voice of Craig Donlon, Copernicus Sentinel-6 Mission Scientist)

(Voice of Pierrik Vuilleumier, Copernicus Sentinel-6 Project Manager)

(Voice of Craig Donlon, Copernicus Sentinel-6 Mission Scientist)