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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Juha-Pekka Luntama, responsible for development of a new space-weather warning capability within ESA's Space Situational Awareness (SSA) programme, explains the origins of space weather and why we need to keep an eye on our Sun.
Stefan Kraft, study manager for a future solar observing missions, explains why international cooperation make sense when dealing with something as big as a star.
Our Sun emits magnetised plasma – ‘solar wind’ – and periodically ejects billions of tons of matter threaded with a magnetic field in coronal mass ejections; these influence the space environment and can cause geomagnetic storms, affecting satellites, infrastructure on ground and human health.
In Europe’s economy today, numerous sectors are potentially affected by space weather, ranging from space-based telecommunications, broadcasting, weather services and navigation through to power distribution and terrestrial communications, especially at northern latitudes.