The European Space Agency (ESA) is Europe’s gateway to space. Its mission is to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world.
Find out more about space activities in our 23 Member States, and understand how ESA works together with their national agencies, institutions and organisations.
Exploring our Solar System and unlocking the secrets of the Universe
Go to topicProtecting life and infrastructure on Earth and in orbit
Go to topicUsing space to benefit citizens and meet future challenges on Earth
Go to topicMaking space accessible and developing the technologies for the future
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3D-printed scale models of asteroids and other planetary bodies are used for real-life testing of spacecraft navigation and landing systems – martian moon Phobos seen in the foreground here.
“The models are based on accurate digital elevation model data gathered from past space missions,” explains Olivier Dubois-Matra of ESA’s Guidance, Navigation and Control Section.
“We then add colour and surface finishing. Asteroids and comets do tend to be very dark – the images usually seen have been lightened and enhanced to reveal detail.”
Mobile cameras manoeuvre around a model – to give the equivalent of a spacecraft’s eye-view – enabling the real-world testing of guidance and landing software and systems, which are often based on the mapping of surface features.
Such physical testing can be carried out in parallel to virtual testing, such as that carried out using the dedicated ‘Planetary and Asteroid Natural scene Generation Utility’ or Pangu software.
Tomorrow, 30 June, is international Asteroid Day, spreading the word on the tiny bodies that Earth shares space with, as both a scientific resource and a potential danger.