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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Einstein Probe’s Wide-field X-ray Telescope detected the weak X-ray signal of the transient EP240315a much earlier than its gamma-ray counterpart. This demonstrates the high sensitivity of its lobster-eye optics. Prompt follow-up observations showed that the burst had come from around 12.5 billion light-years away, beginning its cosmic journey to us when the Universe was just 10 percent its current age.
[Image description: This image is a vertical rectangle, with a representation of the Einstein Probe spacecraft in the middle. The spacecraft has a golden colour and looks like multiple stacked boxes with dark panels sticking out on either side (solar arrays). On the top right of the image, an explosion is visible as a yellow ball with spikes sticking out of it. A green beam goes from the explosion into the spacecraft. Behind the explosion, the night sky is visible and a yellow high-light represents a window to the far-away Universe with a yellow grid, which is a representation of Einstein Probe’s lobster-eye optics. Behind the spacecraft, Earth is visible as a half globe, in a purple-blue hue. On the bottom of the image, multiple dishes are visible in yellow-green, which represent telescopes on the ground.]