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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The Mars500 crew is only two months from their 'arrival' back on Earth and they can't wait to see the sunlight. To prepare for that and to understand more about how the human brain reacts to variations of day and night and adjusts the sleep-wake cycle, the marsonauts are wearing red glasses andilluminating their modules with blue light. Diego explains about the photopigments in our eyes and and shows how the experiment is done.
After all, life inside the Mars500 'spacecraft' is all about the science!