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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Gravity is the fundamental force of the Universe, driving the formation of stars, galaxies and black holes, and its evolution as a whole.
Gravitational waves are expected to be abundant across the cosmos, produced by massive bodies in acceleration, such as exploding stars or pairs of orbiting black holes. They travel across the Universe almost unimpeded, unlike light which gets absorbed by gas and dust.
Despite attempts to detect them directly, gravitational waves so far remain elusive. When they pass through Earth they produce minute changes in the size of our planet, but only by about a millionth of the size of an atom, impossible to measure.
The technology tested by LISA Pathfinder will lead to a future mission within ESA’s Cosmic Vision programme to detect and measure gravitational waves, providing us with a new science altogether and expanding our window on the Universe.