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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A thin crescent Mars (white) captured by Rosetta’s OSIRIS (Optical, Spectrocopic and Infrared Remote Imaging System) instrument in February 2007 during its long journey to comet Churyumov-Gerasimenko. Nightglow in the planet’s atmosphere can be seen at the 11 o’clock position. The red and fuzzy blue haloes are a result of internal reflections within the camera’s optics.
The images from the cruise phase and the flybys at Mars and Earth were recently released and are accessible to the public in ESA’s Planetary Science Archive and NASA’s Planetary Data System.