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
Go to topicThe Martian methane remains a mystery. "In the coming weeks the European Space Agency and NASA are to give the green light for the first joint missions to pursue the exploration of Mars. Despite the many spacecraft orbiting the red planet and the landers on its surface, Mars still holds many mysteries. One of them is the presence of methane discovered five years ago in its atmosphere by ESAs Mars Express and by two telescope observations from Earth. Since then scientists have been investigating the nature and origin of this methane which could, perhaps, be produced by living organisms - but it still remains a great mystery. This A & B-Roll includes interviews with principal scientists working on the subject, including Olivier Witasse, Mars Express Project Scientist at ESA, Vittorio Formisano, PFS Principal Investigator, and Sushil Atreya, leading authority on planetary atmospheres.