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!
ESA astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti took this image through the Unity Node hatch window on the International Space Station as the Permanent Multipurpose Module Leonardo was being moved to a new location.
Leonardo was detached and moved by the main robotic arm on 27 May 2015.
This delicate operation required moving and rotating the 10-tonne module from the Unity node to the Tranquility node.
The day before, NASA astronauts Terry Virts and Scott Kelly finished unbolting the module, closed the hatch and checked for leaks. They will not reopen the hatch at its new location on Tranquility until Thursday after more leak checks.
The change is part of a long line of tasks to allow the Station to berth more visiting spacecraft – Leonardo’s move frees a docking port.
Samantha commented on the picture on Twitter: “Peaking through the little window in the Node 1 nadir hatch as PMM was moved yesterday. #RemodelingInSpace”
Follow Samantha via samanthacristoforetti.esa.int