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 topicA pair of Landsat satellite images have been used to identify land cover change occurring between 1987 and 2003 in the Virunga massif in the Democratic Republic of Congo. The changes seen are highlighted in coded colours: light blue shows non-forest to closed canopy forest - an example of new forest growth - while purple stands for the opposite, closed canopy forest to non-forest. Red corresponds to newly urbanised areas and yellow stands for other changes.