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 James Webb Space Telescope will explore the infrared Universe.
It will use four cutting-edge instruments, including the Mid-InfraRed Instrument. MIRI is one of Europe's contributions to the James Webb Space Telescope.
MIRI supports all of Webb’s science goals. It will image the Universe, study planets around our own and other stars and investigate stars and galaxies across cosmic history.
The instsrument will be kept extra cold by its very own ‘cryocooler’. This stops heat from Webb disrupting MIRI’s detectors, so the sensitive instrument can see mid-infrared light.
Webb is an international partnership between NASA, ESA and CSA
Learn more about MIRI here: https://www.esa.int/Science_Exploration/Space_Science/MIRI_factsheet