ESA title

Our Mission

The development of technology – making new things to do new things – is central to ESA's existence. The Agency spends around 8% of its budget on direct research and development, an activity mandated in the ESA Convention. It runs many preparatory programmes to do this, covering various different inventions, each leading activities based on their technical maturity or their field.

  • TDE The Technology Development Element is responsible for early development stages across all service and technology domains, taking cutting-edge ideas and testing their suitability for space applications.
  • GSTP The General Support Technology Programme is an optional programme that takes previously proven innovations through to succeeding stages of engineering, finally evolving fully-tested hardware ready for adoption by future missions.

Our Responsibility

To make sure that the right technology will be available at the right maturity at the right time for future missions

Shaping the Future
Laser from Optical Ground Station on Tenerife
Enabling & Support

New receiver means safer data encryption

09/01/2019 551 views 1 likes
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Enabling & Support

Testing unusually-shaped parachutes

21/12/2018 725 views 5 likes
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Under Pressure – New Materials Need New Tests

17/12/2018 453 views 1 likes
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From geckos to space: Inspiration for new docking mechanism…

13/12/2018 1098 views 3 likes
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Enabling & Support

Miniature Swiss clock to make telling time in space easier

12/12/2018 582 views 1 likes
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Climate: Earth and beyond

10/12/2018 448 views 1 likes
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GSTP 25
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GSTP celebrates 25 years of time and space

22/10/2018 1142 views 8 likes
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A word from the Director - GSTP turns 25

12/10/2018 388 views 2 likes
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In-Orbit Manufacturing of Very Long Booms

31/07/2018 1811 views 4 likes
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Processor for mobile payloads
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On-Board Processor for Dual Polarization Mobile Payloads

02/07/2018 696 views 0 likes
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Wafer of the developed SiC JBS diode
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Prototyping and Characterization of 1200 V SiC Schottky Dio…

26/06/2018 1403 views 2 likes
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Planet and Asteroid Natural Scene Generation Utility (PANGU…

20/04/2018 3056 views 16 likes
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Image Recognition and Processing for Navigation (IRPN)

18/04/2018 1663 views 3 likes
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Germanium wafers before and after cell manufacturing for different applications
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Pegasus II – Performance Guaranteed Substrates for 6” Wafers

23/03/2018 692 views 0 likes
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ADVISE - Assessed Techniques for Satellite Navigation
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Advanced Signal-In-Space Techniques (ADVISE)

21/03/2018 724 views 1 likes
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Global Monitoring System Brief Telemetry Monitoring Screen
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Global Monitoring and Management System

01/03/2018 2754 views 4 likes
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Modular Multi-Functional Structural Panels

25/02/2018 501 views 2 likes
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GPS/Galileo Miniaturised Multi-Frequency Space Receiver Eng…

23/02/2018 1265 views 4 likes
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High-Voltage High-Power Solar Array For Exploration Missions

23/02/2018 1701 views 8 likes
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Self-Compensating Hall Effect Current Sensors

19/02/2018 2996 views 8 likes
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12 meter Class Segmented Optical Communications Antenna

13/02/2018 784 views 3 likes
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Enabling & Support

Ka Band 100W Solid State Power Amplifier (SSPA)

08/02/2018 6002 views 16 likes
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Sloshing of LN2: high-speed acquired picture of the free surface position
Enabling & Support

Prediction Methods For Propellant Management Devices

26/01/2018 807 views 2 likes
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Enabling & Support

High Speed Infrared Imaging System

16/01/2018 692 views 3 likes
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SABIP Payload consisting of antenna and receiver (courtesy of TAS-D)
Enabling & Support

Space-based ADS-B Payload Development for Air Traffic Surve…

11/01/2018 2930 views 14 likes
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Enabling & Support

New Generation Short Wave Infra-Red (SWIR) Immersed Grating…

10/01/2018 1591 views 1 likes
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Single GaN chip HPA/LNA for Radar Applications

17/08/2017 3976 views 10 likes
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High Specific Energy Lithium Sulfur cell for Space applicat…

08/08/2017 2708 views 6 likes
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Optical Reference Cavities for Space Deployment (ORCS)

28/07/2017 1578 views 1 likes
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European Schottky Technology - Phase 1B

27/07/2017 571 views 4 likes
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Semantic Modelling and Semantic Interoperability - FAMOUS-2

25/07/2017 2029 views 3 likes
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Automatic behavior detection and interpretation from low le…

25/07/2017 734 views 1 likes
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Multi-Disciplinary Assessment of Design for DEMISE Techniqu…

25/07/2017 988 views 0 likes
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Interoperability for Space Environment Analysis Tools

25/07/2017 691 views 1 likes
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ASTOS Market-Oriented Activities

25/07/2017 1952 views 2 likes
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Flow-Structure coupling for hypersonic flows Regime – Part 3

25/07/2017 555 views 0 likes
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Enhancement of VKI Plasmatron Operational Capabilities

25/07/2017 2020 views 1 likes
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Enabling & Support

RADID – Rapid Assessment of Design Impact on Debris Generat…

25/07/2017 1597 views 1 likes
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Satellite Vulnerability Test Bed (SVTB)

25/07/2017 1063 views 0 likes
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High Density European Rad-Hard SRAM-Based FPGA- First Valid…

24/07/2017 14071 views 37 likes
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Characterisation of Metallic Materials

20/07/2017 738 views 0 likes
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Small Scale Cooler

20/07/2017 1899 views 1 likes
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Impact of thermo-mechanical loading history on mechanical p…

20/07/2017 938 views 5 likes
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Demonstrator of Carbon anisogrid payload adapter

20/07/2017 2173 views 11 likes
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Zero-Boil Off Propulsion System Feasibility Demonstration

20/07/2017 5416 views 13 likes
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Competence Domain 8: Ground Data Systems / Mission Operatio…

18/07/2017 1363 views 0 likes
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Competence Domain 6: Life / Physical Science Payloads / Lif…

18/07/2017 829 views 0 likes
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Study on the Technology Demonstration Platform Availability…

18/07/2017 686 views 0 likes
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Software Tool Predicting the Distance Measurement Equipment…

18/07/2017 1303 views 1 likes
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Enabling & Support

Development of a low thrust bipropellant thruster based on …

18/07/2017 3028 views 5 likes
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