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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Space tourists from all over the world gather at the Baikonur Cosmodrome, in the middle of the Kazakh steppe, to see the launch of the Soyuz rocket with International Space Station crews onboard.
We followed some of them during an intensive tour of the city and the Cosmodrome back in 2013. They shared their impressions about this unique site and the excitement of the countdown.
The Baikonur Cosmodrome began taking shape 60 years ago, and it remains today humankind’s gateway to space.