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 topicEarth's magnetosphere is an invisible shield, protecting our planet from harmful solar radiation. Many living organisms - from bacteria to insects or birds - seem to rely on Earth's magnetic field to navigate. Man has been doing so for a thousand years since the invention of the compass. But research shows the magnetic field is weakening and scientists are trying to understand why.
Some believe it signals a pole reversal in progress, not an uncommon phenomenon in the history of our planet. As ground observatories fail to grasp the whole picture, we are sending magnetometers into orbit to try to measure the magnitude and the direction of the magnetic field. Find out more, this week, in Space.