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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NASA astronaut Timothy Kopra has many things in common with his crewmate ESA astronaut Tim Peake, besides their first name and vocation. Both astronauts are military helicopter test pilots and share a similar army background and temperament. Both Tims are ‘aquanauts’, having spent almost two weeks underwater on simulated space missions.
Tim Kopra was born in Texas, USA, and flew into space on Space Shuttle Discovery in 2009, spending almost three months on the International Space Station, including a spacewalk.