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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Members of ESA’s astronaut class of 2022 embarked on their first overseas field trip. They visited NASA’s facilities at the Johnson Space Centre (JSC) in Houston, Texas, USA, to get familiar with the environment where they will spend a significant part of their training once assigned to a mission.
During their time at NASA’s JSC, the astronaut candidates had the opportunity to explore the 12-meter-deep Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory (NBL). This facility hosts a replica of the entire Space Station, where astronauts can perform underwater simulations of spacewalks using the US spacesuit, known as the Extravehicular Mobility Unit (EMU).
As part of their visit, while scuba diving themselves, the group observed a full space suit dive, providing them with a more comprehensive understanding of the process and first-hand experience in the simulation.
From left to right: ESA astronaut candidates Rosemary Coogan, Sophie Adenot, Raphaël Liégeois, Marco Sieber, Pablo Álvarez Fernández and ESA astronaut and lead of astronaut operations at the European Astronaut Centre Alexander Gerst.