The European Space Agency (ESA) is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to exploration of space and its exploitation. Its headquarters are in Paris, France. The ESA has a staff of about 1,900 with a budget of 2.9 billion euros in 2005. With permission from ESA. The logo may be used together with the wikipedia articles. ... Intergovernmentalism is a method of decision-making in international organizations, where power is possessed by the member_states and decisions are made by unanimity. ... Space exploration is the physical exploration of outer-Earth objects and generally anything that involves the technologies, science, and politics regarding space endeavors. ... Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are concentrated. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... The euro (€; ISO 4217 code EUR) is the currency of twelve European Union member states: Austria, Belgium, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Portugal, and Spain. ... 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

ESA's spaceport (its launch site) is the Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana, a site chosen because it is close to the equator. Since a launch closer to the equator uses less fuel, the site thereby allows easier and cheaper access to commercially important orbits such as GEO. ESA Science missions are based at ESTEC in Noordwijk, Netherlands, Earth Observation missions at ESRIN in Frascati, Italy and ESA Mission Control (ESOC) is in Darmstadt, Germany. The Guiana Space Centre (French: Centre Spatial Guyanais) is a French/European spaceport near Kourou in French Guiana. ... Kourou is a town and commune in French Guiana, some 40 km northwest of the capital Cayenne. ... The equator is an imaginary line drawn around a planet, halfway between the poles. ... A geostationary orbit (abbreviated GEO) is a circular orbit in the Earths equatorial plane, any point on which revolves about the Earth in the same direction and with the same period as the Earths rotation. ... Noordwijk (population: 24,452 in 2004) is a municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. ... A town in Italy south east of Rome, near Tusculum. ... Centre in Darmstadt, Germany The European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) is responsible for controlling ESA satellites and space probes. ... Map of Germany showing Darmstadt Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland (federal state) of Hessen in Germany. ...

As of 2005, the Director General of ESA is Jean-Jacques Dordain. 2005 is a common year starting on Saturday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

History

The precursor of the European Space Agency, ESRO (European Space Research Organisation) was established on March 20, 1964 per an agreement signed on June 14, 1962. The ESRO's successor organisation ESTEC (European Space Research and Technology Centre, based in Noordwijk, the Netherlands) is still a part of ESA, though ESA itself is a much bigger organisation today. ESA in its current form was founded in 1974, when ESRO was merged with the ELDO, the European Launcher Development Organisation. The European Space Agency (ESA) is an inter-governmental organisation dedicated to exploration of space and its exploitation. ... March 20 is the 79th day of the year in the Gregorian Calendar (80th in Leap years). ... 1964 was a leap year starting on Wednesday (link will take you to calendar). ... June 14 is the 165th day of the year in the Gregorian calendar (166th in leap years), with 200 days remaining. ... 1962 was a common year starting on Monday (link will take you to calendar). ... Noordwijk (population: 24,452 in 2004) is a municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. ... 1974 is a common year starting on Tuesday (click on link for calendar). ... The European Launcher Development Organisation (ELDO) was a multinational consortium formed in the 1960s to build an indigenous European space launch vehicle. ...

Member countries and organisations

Member states of the European Space Agency

ESA comprises the national space organisations and other entities of these sixteen countries: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. France is the main contributor (see also CNES). File links The following pages link to this file: European Space Agency ... File links The following pages link to this file: European Space Agency ... The Centre National dÉtudes Spatiales is the French government space agency (administratively, a public establishment of industrial and commercial character). Its headquarters are located in central Paris. ...

Since January 1, 1979, Canada has the special status of cooperating state with the ESA. By virtue of this accord, Canada takes part in ESA's deliberative bodies and decision-making and also in ESA's programmes and activities. Canadian firms can bid for and receive contracts to work on programmes. The accord has a provision ensuring a fair industrial return to Canada. See also: Canadian Space Agency January 1 is the first day of the calendar year in both the Julian and Gregorian calendars. ... 1979 is a common year starting on Monday. ... Canadian Space Agency The Canadian Space Agency (CSA or, in French, lAgence spatiale canadienne, ASC) is the government department responsible for Canadas space program. ...

Luxembourg is expected to become a full ESA Member State by December 1 2005.

Hungary and the Czech Republic signed the five-year Plan for European Cooperating State (PECS), that is aimed at preparing the states for full membership. Their firms can bid for and receive contracts to work on programmes. The countries can participate in almost all programmes, except for the Basic Technology Research Programme. The membership fees are much lower than with full membership.

Poland and Romania are likely to be the next to sign PECS documents [1] (http://t2wesa.r3h.net/esaCP/SEMLTLUZJND_Benefits_2.html).

ESA has entered into a major joint venture with Russia (see below).

Currently, ESA is not within the structures of the European Union (EU) — note that its membership contains non-EU countries such as Switzerland and Norway. There are ties between the organisations, with various agreements in place and being worked on, to establish the legal status of ESA with regard to the EU [2] (http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMFEPYV1SD_index_0.html). There are common goals between ESA and the EU, and ESA has an EU liaison office in Brussels. The EU in particular wishes to secure political control of Europe's space access, an issue of vital importance for Europe's political and economic role in the world.

CNES (France)

The Centre National d'Études Spatiales (CNES) (National Centre for Space Study) is the French government space agency (administratively, a "public establishment of industrial and commercial character"). Its headquarters are in central Paris. The Centre National dÉtudes Spatiales is the French government space agency (administratively, a public establishment of industrial and commercial character). Its headquarters are located in central Paris. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ...

Italian Space Agency

The Italian Space Agency (Agenzia Spaziale Italiana or ASI) was founded in 1988 to promote, coordinate and conduct space activities in Italy. The Italian Space Agency (LAgenzia Spaziale Italiana or ASI) was founded in 1988 to promote, co-ordinate and conduct space activities in Italy. ... 1988 is a leap year starting on a Friday of the Gregorian calendar. ...

Operating under the Ministry of the Universities and of Scientific and Technological Research, the agency cooperates with numerous entities active in space technology and with the president of the Council of Ministers. Internationally, the ASI provides Italy's delegation to the Council of the European Space Agency and to its subordinate bodies.

German Aerospace Center

The German Aerospace Center (DLR) (German: Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e.V.) is the national research centre for aviation and space flight of the Federal Republic of Germany and of other member states in the Helmholtz Association. The German Aerospace Center (DLR) (German: ) is the national research center for aviation and space flight of the Federal Republic of Germany and of other member states in the Helmholtz Association. ... The Helmholtz Association (German: Helmholtz-Gesellschaft) is the largest scientific organisation in Germany. ...

Its extensive research and development projects are included in national and international cooperative programmes. In addition to its research projects, the centre is the assigned space agency of Germany bestowing headquarters of German space flight activities and its associates.

Launch vehicle fleet

Ariane 5 launched ESA's Rosetta space probe in March 2004.

ESA has made great progress towards its goal of having a complete fleet of launch vehicles in service, competing in all sectors of the launch market. ESA's fleet will soon consist of three major rocket designs: Ariane 5 lifts off with the Rosetta probe on 2nd of March, 2004. ... Ariane 5 lifts off with the Rosetta probe on 2nd of March, 2004. ... The Ariane 5 is an expendable launch system, designed and manufactured under the authority of the European Space Agency (ESA) by EADS SPACE Transportation, the Prime Contractor, leading a consortium of many sub-contractors and is operated and marketed by Arianespace as part of the Ariane programme. ... Conceptual drawing of the Rosetta orbiter and Philae lander Rosetta is an European Space Agency led unmanned space mission, launched in 2004, and intended to study the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. ...

• Ariane 5 - ESA's large payload (6-10 metric tons to GTO) launcher, in service since 1997. (Several revisions are planned.) [3] (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Launchers_Access_to_Space/SEM9UD67ESD_0.html)
• Soyuz - a Russian medium payload (ca. 3 metric tons to GTO) launcher to be brought into ESA service in 2007 (see below). [4] (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Launchers_Access_to_Space/SEMQ5P57ESD_0.html)
• Vega - ESA's small payload (ca. 1.5 metric tons to 700km orbit) launcher; its first launch is planned for 2007. [5] (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Launchers_Access_to_Space/SEMH3E67ESD_0.html)

ESA's Ariane 1, 2, 3 and 4 launchers (the latter of which was ESA's long time workhorse) have been retired. The Ariane 5 is an expendable launch system, designed and manufactured under the authority of the European Space Agency (ESA) by EADS SPACE Transportation, the Prime Contractor, leading a consortium of many sub-contractors and is operated and marketed by Arianespace as part of the Ariane programme. ... A geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) is a Hohmann transfer orbit around the Earth between a low Earth orbit (LEO) and a geostationary orbit (GEO). ... 1997 is a common year starting on Wednesday of the Gregorian calendar, and was designated the International Year of the Reef. ... The Soyuz launch vehicle is an expendable launch system designed by the Korolev Design Bureau (Soviet Union) and used as the launcher for the manned Soyuz spacecraft, as part of the Soyuz program. ... A geostationary transfer orbit (GTO) is a Hohmann transfer orbit around the Earth between a low Earth orbit (LEO) and a geostationary orbit (GEO). ... 2007 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Vega (ESA) Vega is a planned expendable launch system developed by the European Space Agency since 1998, with the first launch planned for 2006. ... 2007 is a common year starting on Monday of the Gregorian calendar. ... The Ariane Family The name Ariane refers to a series of a civilian European expendable launch vehicles for space launch use. ... Ariane I is the first version of the Ariane launcher family. ... The Ariane 2 and Ariane 3 were expendable launch systems in the Ariane family designed by the European Space Agency. ... The Ariane 2 and Ariane 3 were expendable launch systems in the Ariane family designed by the European Space Agency. ... Ariane 4 was an expendable launch system, designed by the European Space Agency and manufactured and marketed by the French company Arianespace. ...

ESA has entered into a 340 million euro joint venture with the Russian Federal Space Agency over the use of the Soyuz launcher [6] (http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Launchers_Home/SEMCDI1PGQD_0.html). Under the agreement, the Russian agency will manufacture Soyuz rocket parts for ESA, which will then be shipped to French Guiana for assembly. ESA benefits because it gains a medium payloads launcher, complementing its fleet while saving on development costs. In addition, the Soyuz rocket — which has been the Russian's space launch workhorse for some 40 years — is proven technology with a good safety record, which ESA might be happy to use for launching humans into space. Russia also benefits in that it will get access to the Kourou launch site. Launching from Kourou rather than Baikonur will allow the Russians to almost double the Soyuz payload (3.0 tons vs. 1.7 tons), because of Kourou's closer proximity to the equator. Both sides benefit from the long term strategic cooperation (which will also be used to jointly develop future technology). It might be worth pointing out that France (which again is the main contributor to ESA) has historically had good relations with Russia. This may have been instrumental in reaching this agreement. (See this EuroNews report about the joint venture (http://stream1.euronews.net:8080/ramgen/mag/space-soyouz-en.rm?usehostname) (Real video stream).) The Russian Federal Space Agency, formerly the Russian Aviation and Space Agency (RKA) (in Russian: Российское авиационно-космическое агентство) is the government agency responsible for Russias space science program and general aerospace research. ... Baikonur (formerly Leninsk) is a city in Kazakhstan administered by Russia. ...

ESA astronauts

ESA astronauts

Pedro Duque (E), Gerhard Thiele (D), Jean-Francois Clervoy (F), Umberto Guidoni (I), Leopold Eyharts (F), Reinhold Ewald (D), Roberto Vittori (I), Claude Nicollier (CH). Paolo Nespoli (I), Thomas Reiter (D), Christer Fuglesang (S), Frank De Winne (B), Michel Tognini (F), Hans Schlegel, Philippe Perrin (F), André Kuipers (NL). ESA astronauts. ... ESA astronauts. ... External link NASA Biography Categories: Stub | 1963 births | Astronauts | European astronauts ...

ESA astronauts to have visited the ISS are:

• U. Guidoni (I), ESA, 9th ISS flight (6A) Raffaello MPLM, STS-100/ISS, 19/04/01 - 01/05/01
• C. Haigneré (F), CNES Andromède, Soyuz/ISS, 21/10/01 - 31/10/01
• R. Vittori (I), ASI Marco Polo, Soyuz/ISS, 25/04/02 - 05/05/02
• Perrin (F), NASA/ESA, ISS assembly flight UF-2, STS-111/ISS, 05/06/02 - 19/06/02
• F. De Winne (B), ESA, Odissea, Soyuz/ISS, 30/10/02 - 10/11/02
• P. Duque (E), ESA, Cervantes, Soyuz/ISS 18/10/03 - 28/10/03
• A. Kuipers (NL), ESA, DELTA Mission, 8S/ISS, 19/04/04 - 30/04/04
• R. Vittori (I), ASI Eneide, Soyuz/ISS, 15/04/05 - 25/04/05

March 10, 2001 - The Leonardo Multi Purpose Logistics Module rests in Discoverys payload bay in this view taken from the ISS by a crew member using a digital still camera during STS-102. ...

ESA projects

Current projects

ESA's Artemis performing laser-communication with SPOT4(France).

The Columbus orbital facility is a module of the International Space Station(ISS) that ESA developed.

ESA is taking part in the construction and operation of the ISS, having built the Columbus orbital facility for it — a science laboratory module that will be brought into orbit after NASA's Space Shuttle goes back into service. Download high resolution version (909x643, 62 KB)ESA Artemis telecoms satellite communicating with SPOT4 (France) with the laser payload SILEX. Alenia Spazio (Italy) was prime contractor for the spacecraft, while EADS Space (Toulouse, France) built the advanced SILEX payload. ... Download high resolution version (909x643, 62 KB)ESA Artemis telecoms satellite communicating with SPOT4 (France) with the laser payload SILEX. Alenia Spazio (Italy) was prime contractor for the spacecraft, while EADS Space (Toulouse, France) built the advanced SILEX payload. ... ISS ESA Columbus Orbital Facility (NASA) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... ISS ESA Columbus Orbital Facility (NASA) File history Legend: (cur) = this is the current file, (del) = delete this old version, (rev) = revert to this old version. ... ESA Columbus Orbital Facility (NASA) The Columbus orbital facility is a science laboratory designed to be a part of the International Space Station. ... ISS Statistics Crew: 2 As of April 26, 2005 Perigee: 349. ... The abbreviation ISS may refer to: The International Space Station Internet Security Systems, a computer security company The Iss-rune ᛁ of the Younger Futhark: See Isaz In School Suspension The video game series International Superstar Soccer The Industrial Sounding System This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which... ESA Columbus Orbital Facility (NASA) The Columbus orbital facility is a science laboratory designed to be a part of the International Space Station. ... The Space Shuttle Columbia seconds after engine ignition, 1981 (NASA). ...

ESA is building the ATV — an Automated Transfer vehicle, i.e. a space freighter comparable to Progress — for serving the ISS. ISS ESA Automatic Transfer Vehicle (ESA) The Automated Transfer Vehicle or ATV is a European Space Agency spacecraft designed to supply the International Space Station with propellant, water, air, payload experiments and the like. ... ISS Progress cargo spacecraft (NASA) The Progress is an expendable unmanned freighter spacecraft; it is Soyuz derived and is launched also by the Soyuz launch vehicle. ... The abbreviation ISS may refer to: The International Space Station Internet Security Systems, a computer security company The Iss-rune ᛁ of the Younger Futhark: See Isaz In School Suspension The video game series International Superstar Soccer The Industrial Sounding System This is a disambiguation page — a navigational aid which...

Further ESA projects include:

• Galileo positioning system — a proposed satellite positioning system
• Herschel-Planck
• Artemis mission — Europe's most advanced telecoms satellite
• Integral
• BepiColombo
• Huygens probe — a space probe to Saturn's moon Titan
• Mars Express — a space probe to Mars
• Venus Express — a space probe to Venus
• Rosetta — a space probe launched 2004 that will land on a comet
• Smart 1 — testing new propulsion technology
• LISA Pathfinder (aka Smart-2)
• Swarm
• Corot — a space telescope for detecting rocky exoplanets larger than Earth. A project led by CNES.

The ESA is also sponsoring the KEO satellite, which will carry messages addressed to future inhabitants of the planet Earth, and is expected to come back to Earth in the year 52006. The Galileo positioning system (not to be confused with, or abbreviated to, GPS) is a planned civil satellite navigation system, intended as a European alternative to the military-controlled United States Global Positioning System (GPS). ... Satellite navigation systems use radio time signals transmitted by satellites to enable mobile receivers on the ground to determine their exact location. ... In calculus, the integral of a function is a generalization of area, mass, volume, sum, and total. ... BepiColombo is a European Space Agency (ESA) Cornerstone mission to Mercury. ... An artists impression of the Huygens probe as it descends through Titans murky, brownish-orange atmosphere of nitrogen and carbon-based molecules, beaming its findings to the distant Cassini orbiter. ... Saturn may refer to: Saturn (planet) – the sixth planet from the Sun Saturn (detachment) - the Russian Ministry of Justice special forces unit Saturn (Roman god) – in Roman mythology, the first of the Titans Saturn (CPU) – the CPU in certain Hewlett-Packard programmable calculators, Saturn automobile – a brand of automobile Saturn... Titan (tye-tun, IPA ; Greek Τιτάνας) is the largest moon of Saturn and the second largest moon in the solar system[1], after Jupiters moon Ganymede. ... Mars Express spacecraft Mars Express is a Mars exploration mission of the European Space Agency and Italian Space Agency. ... Mars is the fourth planet from the Sun in the solar system, named after the Roman god of war (the counterpart of the Greek Ares), on account of its blood red color as viewed in the night sky. ... Venus Express Venus Express is the first Venus exploration mission of the European Space Agency. ... (*min temperature refers to cloud tops only) Atmospheric characteristics Atmospheric pressure 9. ... Conceptual drawing of the Rosetta orbiter and Philae lander Rosetta is an European Space Agency led unmanned space mission, launched in 2004, and intended to study the comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko. ... 2004 is a leap year starting on Thursday of the Gregorian calendar. ... Comet Hale-Bopp, showing a white dust tail and blue gas tail (February 1997) A comet is a small astronomical object similar to an asteroid but composed largely of ice. ... SMART-1. ... LISA Pathfinder is the revised name for SMART-2, an ESA space probe to be launched in 2008. ... Corot is a space mission of the French Space Agency (CNES) and the European Space Agency, with a launch planned in 2006. ... The Centre National dÉtudes Spatiales is the French government space agency (administratively, a public establishment of industrial and commercial character). Its headquarters are located in central Paris. ... The KEO satellite is a satellite space time capsule which will be launched in 2006 carrying messages from the citizens of present Earth to earthlings 50,000 years from now, when the satellite orbiting Earth will return. ... A satellite is an object that orbits another object (known as its primary). ... Earth, also known as the Earth or Terra, is the third planet outward from the Sun. ...

The ESA has also collaborated with NASA on several missions: The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (established 1958) is the government agency responsible for the United States of Americas space program and long-term general aerospace research. ...

• Hubble Space Telescope
• Ulysses
• Cassini-Huygens, where ESA was responsible for the Huygens probe, that landed on Saturn's moon Titan in January 2005.

The Hubble Space Telescope (HST) is a telescope orbiting the Earth 370 miles above the atmosphere. ... Ulysses spacecraft Ulysses is an unmanned probe designed to study the Sun at all latitudes. ... This is an artists concept of Cassini during the Saturn Orbit Insertion (SOI) maneuver, just after the main engine has begun firing. ... An artists impression of the Huygens probe as it descends through Titans murky, brownish-orange atmosphere of nitrogen and carbon-based molecules, beaming its findings to the distant Cassini orbiter. ... Saturn may refer to: Saturn (planet) – the sixth planet from the Sun Saturn (detachment) - the Russian Ministry of Justice special forces unit Saturn (Roman god) – in Roman mythology, the first of the Titans Saturn (CPU) – the CPU in certain Hewlett-Packard programmable calculators, Saturn automobile – a brand of automobile Saturn... This page is about the moon of Saturn. ...

Past projects

• Hipparcos — a space-based astrometry mission
• Giotto mission

The High Precision Parallax Collecting Satellite of the Hipparcos Space Astrometry Mission was a project of the European Space Agency (ESA) dedicated to the measurement of stellar parallax and the proper motions of stars. ... Astrometry is a part of Astronomy and deals with the positions of stars and other celestial bodies, their distances and movements. ... In this artists concept, Giotto points its white high-gain antenna dish towards earth with the ring of solar cells facing the sun. ...

Future projects

• Darwin
• The Aurora Programme

Darwin is a proposed European Space Agency (ESA) mission designed to directly detect Earth-like planets orbiting nearby stars, and search for evidence of life on these planets. ... The Aurora Programme of the European Space Agency is an ambitious programme of manned and unmanned exploration of the Solar system, and particularly Mars. ...

Field installations

• Headquarters of ESA, Paris, France
• European Space Operations Centre (ESOC), Darmstadt, Germany
• Centre Spatial Guyanais, Kourou, French Guiana
• European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC), Noordwijk, The Netherlands
• European Space Research Institute (ESRIN), Frascati, Italy
• European Astronauts Centre (EAC), Cologne, Germany

Headquarters denotes the location where most, if not all, of the important functions of an organization are concentrated. ... The Eiffel Tower has become a symbol of Paris throughout the world. ... Centre in Darmstadt, Germany The European Space Operations Centre (ESOC) is responsible for controlling ESA satellites and space probes. ... Map of Germany showing Darmstadt Darmstadt is a city in the Bundesland (federal state) of Hessen in Germany. ... The Guiana Space Centre (French: Centre Spatial Guyanais) is a French/European spaceport near Kourou in French Guiana. ... Kourou is a town and commune in French Guiana, some 40 km northwest of the capital Cayenne. ... Noordwijk (population: 24,452 in 2004) is a municipality in the western Netherlands, in the province of South Holland. ... The Netherlands (Dutch: Nederland) is the European part of the Kingdom of the Netherlands (Dutch: Koninkrijk der Nederlanden). ... A town in Italy south east of Rome, near Tusculum. ... Map of Germany showing Cologne Cologne skyline at night. ...

See also

• Orfeo Programme — the European high-resolution Earth observation programme
• Space exploration
• EUMETSAT
• NASA
• CNES
• Arianespace
• Esrange

The introduction of this article does not provide enough context for readers unfamiliar with the subject to understand later content. ... Space exploration is the physical exploration of outer-Earth objects and generally anything that involves the technologies, science, and politics regarding space endeavors. ... EUMETSAT is an intergovernmental organisation created through an international convention agreed by 18 European Member States: Austria, Belgium, Denmark, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Portugal, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey, and the United Kingdom. ... The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) (established 1958) is the government agency responsible for the United States of Americas space program and long-term general aerospace research. ... The Centre National dÉtudes Spatiales is the French government space agency (administratively, a public establishment of industrial and commercial character). Its headquarters are located in central Paris. ... Founded in 1980, Arianespace SA undertakes the production, operation and marketing of the Ariane 4 and Ariane 5 rocket launchers as part of the Ariane programme. ... Esrange, the European Space and Sounding Rocket Range, is a rocket range and research center located outside the town of Kiruna in northern Sweden at 67°5338 N and 21°0625 E. It is a base for atmospheric research with balloons, investigation of the aurora borealis, and rocket...

External link

• ESA website (http://www.esa.int)