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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This image was taken on 22 March 2021 in the Lunae Planum region [16.74°N, 300.9°E] of Mars by the CaSSIS camera on the ESA-Roscosmos ExoMars Trace Gas Orbiter (TGO).
This region is known to be covered by large lava deposits probably from the nearby Tharsis Montes volcanoes. In this image three medium-sized impact craters take centre stage, with many smaller impacts pockmarking the scene. Zooming into the larger craters it is possible to see layers in the inner rim that could represent the successive accumulation of lava flows in this area.
TGO’s full science mission began in 2018. The spacecraft is not only returning spectacular images, but also providing the best ever inventory of the planet’s atmospheric gases, and mapping the planet’s surface for water-rich locations.