Thomas in Columbus

ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet in the European space laboratory Columbus that is part of the International Space Station. This picture was taken on 26 November 2016 during the six-month Proxima mission.

The Columbus laboratory is ESA’s largest single contribution to the International Space Station. It was also the first permanent European research facility in space.

The state-of-the-art facility offers 75 cubic metres of space and contains an entire suite of research equipment. External platforms support experiments and applications in space science, Earth observation and technology.

Columbus offers European scientists full access to a weightless environment that cannot possibly be duplicated on Earth.