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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Inspecting a vacuum chamber in the ESA Propulsion Laboratory. ESTEC labs test candidate parts and materials for space missions to the point of destruction if need be. ‘Nanoscratchers’ check the resistance of coatings a millionth of a metre thick, while atomic force microscopes survey test item surfaces down to the scale of individual atoms. Items can be bombarded with radiation, crushed, shaken, heated or exposed to space-quality vacuum.