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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As part of its approach of embracing the concept of New Space through the FutureEO programme, ESA has selected one of four proposals as the first ‘Scout’ mission. This decision paves the way to starting negotiations with GomSpace in Denmark who will lead industrial consortium for the development of a small-satellite mission called Earth System Processes Monitored in the Atmosphere by a Constellation of CubeSats, or EPS–MACCS for short.
ESP-MACCS focusses on understanding and quantifying atmospheric processes in the upper troposphere and in the stratosphere. In particular, it will make observations in tropical and sub-tropical latitudes to observe gases such as water vapour, carbon dioxide, methane, ozone and nitrous oxide as well as aerosols – all of which play a key role in the greenhouse effect and climate change. The mission comprises three 12-litre CubeSats, each carrying thermal infrared spectrometer, as well as a visible near-infrared hyperspectral solar disk imager as a secondary instrument.