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
Go to topicThank you for liking
You have already liked this page, you can only like it once!
The normally shuttered doors of ESA’s satellite testing facility were thrown open to the BBC’s popular Stargazing Live programme last Friday. Some 1.8 million viewers witnessed a live demonstration of the earthquake-strength Electrodynamic Shaker, used to simulate the intense vibrations of a space launch.
BBC presenter Dallas Campbell, seen atop the shaker here, was careful to jump off it before the session began. The shaker sweep began at three times per second, building up to 200 times per second.
The vibrating test item atop the shaker was not actual flight hardware but a mockup created expressly for the show.
ESA engineer Matteo Appolloni explained the workings of the shaker to viewers.
ESA’s ESTEC Test Centre in the Netherlands is the largest facility of its kind in Europe, providing a complete suite of equipment for all aspects of satellite testing under a single roof.