http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/space_time/esa/ European Space Agency News. Read all about ESA initiatives and programs, see space images. en-us Fri, 16 May 2008 16:05:01 EDT Fri, 16 May 2008 16:05:01 EDT 60 http://www.sciencedaily.com/images/logosmall.gif http://www.sciencedaily.com/news/space_time/esa/ For more science articles, visit ScienceDaily. http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508142121.htm The crew of the International Space Station (ISS) is presently testing a Swedish space gym. The aim is to counteract muscle atrophy and osteoporosis in astronauts. Astronauts who spend a long time in space can face problems when they return to earth. Weightlessness atrophies the muscles and decalcifies the skeleton. It doesn't help to "pump iron." Barbells and dumbbells are also weightless on a space voyage. Sat, 10 May 2008 14:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080508142121.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507105616.htm Following a successful launch on April 27, GIOVE-B began transmitting navigation signals May 7. This is a truly historic step for satellite navigation since GIOVE-B is now, for the first time, transmitting the GPS-Galileo common signal using a specific optimised waveform, MBOC (multiplexed binary offset carrier), in accordance with the agreement drawn up in July 2007 by the EU and the US for their respective systems, Galileo and the future GPS III. Fri, 09 May 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/05/080507105616.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429120900.htm Artificial intelligence being used at the European Space Operations Center is giving a powerful boost to ESA's Mars Express as it searches for signs of past or present life on the Red Planet. Thu, 01 May 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080429120900.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428203702.htm A new life-detecting instrument is preparing for a mission to the Red Planet. The Urey: Mars Organic and Oxidant Detector instrument, developed by a scientist at Scripps Institution of Oceanography at UC San Diego, received approximately $2 million in NASA funding to further refine the design and technology for the European Space Agency's (ESA) 2013 ExoMars Rover Mission. Wed, 30 Apr 2008 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080428203702.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080420114718.htm A radar instrument has looked beneath the surface of Mars and opened up a new dimension for planetary exploration. The technique's success is prompting scientists to think of other places in the solar system where they would like to use radar sounders. Tue, 22 Apr 2008 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080420114718.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080414094156.htm The European Space Agency has chosen the GSI accelerator facility to assess radiation risks that astronauts will be exposed to on a Mars mission. GSI was selected because its accelerator is the only one in Europe able to create ion beams similar to those found in space. To determine possible health risks of manned space flights, scientists from all over Europe have been asked to investigate the effects of ion beams in human cells and organs. Mon, 14 Apr 2008 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080414094156.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080403125509.htm ATV Jules Verne, the European Space Agency's first resupply and reboost vehicle, has successfully performed a fully automated docking with the International Space Station. This docking marks the beginning of Jules Verne's main servicing mission to deliver cargo, propellant, water, oxygen and propulsion capacity to the Station, as well as ESA's entry into the restricted club of the partners able to access the orbital facility by their own means. Fri, 04 Apr 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/04/080403125509.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328112830.htm After several days spent in a parking orbit 2000 km ahead of the ISS, Jules Verne ATV is now ready to join up with the International Space Station. This first docking attempt can be followed live on April 3, 2008 from 15:30 CEST onwards from one of the European participating centers. Mon, 31 Mar 2008 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080328112830.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320095012.htm Jules Verne ATV has today reached a parking position 2000 km ahead of the International Space Station. Europe's ISS re-supply spacecraft will wait at this holding point for the completion of the STS-123 Space Shuttle mission before proceeding with the first of two rendezvous demonstration days. Thu, 20 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080320095012.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080319140759.htm The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has made the first detection ever of an organic molecule in the atmosphere of a planet orbiting another star. This breakthrough is an important step in eventually identifying signs of life on a planet outside our Solar System. Wed, 19 Mar 2008 17:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080319140759.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080314130433.htm ESA's Artemis data relay satellite, controlled from Fucino (Italy) and with its mission control center and Earth terminal located at Redu (Belgium), is providing communications between the Jules Verne ATV and the ATV Control Center in Toulouse (France). Fri, 14 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080314130433.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080314112239.htm Mission controllers received confirmation shortly March 14 that Jules Verne ATV had successfully demonstrated the critical Collision Avoidance Maneuver. The crucial test included placing the spacecraft into a minimally functioning "survival" mode. Fri, 14 Mar 2008 00:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080314112239.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080310110917.htm Jules Verne, the first of the European Space Agency's Automated Transfer Vehicles, a new series of autonomous spaceships designed to resupply and reboost the International Space Station, was successfully launched into low Earth orbit by an Ariane 5 vehicle this morning. Wed, 12 Mar 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080310110917.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311100010.htm One of the experiments housed on the European Columbus laboratory's external platform is an automated eye in the sky known as the Earth Viewing Camera. Now, after several weeks of troubleshooting, the first pictures from the orbiting camera have arrived safely back on Earth. Wed, 12 Mar 2008 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311100010.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311085606.htm Space shuttle Endeavour thundered into orbit early in the morning on March 11 carrying seven astronauts and Japan's dreams for a space-based laboratory at the International Space Station. The first module of the Japanese-built Kibo laboratory complex was packed inside Endeavour's cargo bay, along with a Canadian-built robotics system that will enhance the capabilities of the International Space Station's robotic arm. Tue, 11 Mar 2008 11:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/03/080311085606.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080229102056.htm With ESA's Columbus laboratory successfully attached and operating on the International Space Station, the time has now come for another European milestone mission to leave for the ISS -- that of the first Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV), named "Jules Verne." Tue, 04 Mar 2008 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080229102056.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080228143538.htm Interstellar space may be strewn with tiny whiskers of carbon, dimming the light of far-away objects. This discovery may have implications for the "dark energy" hypothesis, proposed a decade ago in part to explain the unexpected dimness of certain stellar explosions called Type 1a supernovae. Fri, 29 Feb 2008 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080228143538.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080222101542.htm Ulysses, the mission to study the Sun's poles and the influence of our star on surrounding space is coming to an end. After more than 17 years in space -- almost four times its expected lifetime -- the mission is finally succumbing to its harsh environment and is likely to finish sometime in the next month or two. Mon, 25 Feb 2008 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080222101542.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080220103538.htm NASA's space shuttle Atlantis, which successfully delivered ESA's Columbus laboratory to the International Space Station, has safely returned to Earth with its crew of seven. Thu, 21 Feb 2008 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080220103538.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080213111050.htm European scientists have developed the most accurate method yet for predicting the doses of radiation that astronauts will receive aboard the orbiting European laboratory module, Columbus, recently attached to the ISS. Mon, 18 Feb 2008 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080213111050.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080211120639.htm After the successful launch of ESA's Columbus laboratory aboard Space Shuttle Atlantis on Feb. 7, it is now time to focus on the next imminent milestone for ESA: the launch of Jules Verne, the first Automated Transfer Vehicle to be sent to the International Space Station. Thu, 14 Feb 2008 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080211120639.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080208095745.htm ESA's test center is buzzing with activity and anticipation as it welcomes its latest guest. The gigantic telescope of ESA's space-based infrared observatory, Herschel, is being prepared to be assembled with its spacecraft in the next few weeks. Wed, 13 Feb 2008 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080208095745.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080212121207.htm The 24th shuttle flight to the International Space Station, STS-122, delivers Columbus, the European Space Agency's new laboratory. Columbus is being installed on Harmony Node 2. European astronaut and station flight engineer Leopold Eyharts got a look inside the new Columbus laboratory around 9 a.m. EST February 12. Tue, 12 Feb 2008 17:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080212121207.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080212095454.htm With the Columbus mission well under way, the space station program has assigned crews for the next flight opportunities. Belgian ESA astronaut Frank De Winne joins Expedition 19 and will spend six months on the ISS in 2009. In May 2009, he will fly together with Russian cosmonaut Yuri Lonchakov and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Robert Thirsk on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft to the ISS. Tue, 12 Feb 2008 00:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080212095454.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080207163801.htm Columbus, ESA's advanced science laboratory in space, has just been launched into orbit, and is now on its way to dock with the International Space Station. One astronaut will return to Earth after the 12-day Shuttle mission is over, but another will stay on the ISS for over two more months to supervise the in-orbit commissioning of ESA’s Columbus laboratory and its experimental facilities and to perform a program of experiments. Fri, 08 Feb 2008 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080207163801.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080201102237.htm Astronomers will be studying icy cosmic dust millions of light years away -- using the biggest space telescope ever built. As well as being able to see star-forming regions very nearby in our own galaxy, it will be able to see galaxies forming when the universe was in its infancy, more than ten billion years ago. Wed, 06 Feb 2008 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/02/080201102237.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080125230056.htm ESA's Cluster mission has, for the first time, observed the extent of the region that triggers magnetic reconnection, and it is much larger than previously thought. This gives future space missions a much better chance of studying it. Space is filled with plasma (a gas composed of ions and electrons, globally neutral) and is threaded by magnetic fields. These magnetic fields store energy which can be released explosively, in a process called magnetic reconnection. Thu, 31 Jan 2008 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080125230056.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080129212723.htm Earth dodged a bullet today, when asteroid TU24 passed within 540,000 kilometers of our planet, which is just down the street on a galactic scale. Tomorrow, another asteroid -- 2007 WD5 -- will zip past Mars at a distance of only 26,000 kilometers away. Will we dodge the bullet the next time a near-Earth object (NEO) hurtles dangerously close to our home planet? Wed, 30 Jan 2008 23:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080129212723.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080123090504.htm With NASA's recent confirmation of the launch of Space Shuttle Atlantis on Thursday, Feb. 7, ESA astronauts Hans Schlegel of Germany and Leopold Eyharts of France are set to deliver ESA's Columbus laboratory to the International Space Station. Sun, 27 Jan 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080123090504.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080118101918.htm The European Space Agency signaled the start of a busy period for the planet Mercury, when it signed the contract for industrial development to start for the BepiColombo mission Jan. 18, 2008. BepiColombo, a mission to make the most comprehensive study of Mercury ever, is due for launch in August 2013. Sun, 20 Jan 2008 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080118101918.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080110194502.htm Cosmologists have run a series of huge computer simulations of the Universe that could ultimately help solve the mystery of dark energy. Results of the simulations tell researchers how to measure dark energy -- a repulsive force that counteracts gravity. Fri, 11 Jan 2008 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2008/01/080110194502.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071207120822.htm A model of the James Webb Space Telescope's Mid-InfraRed Instrument will be tested before Christmas at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire, England to ensure the final instrument can see infrared light. Mon, 31 Dec 2007 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071207120822.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071216125519.htm Astronomers have discovered a new cluster of galaxies, hidden behind a previously identified cluster of galaxies. The recently exposed cosmic giant is apparently just as bright as the first group, but is six times further away. Mon, 17 Dec 2007 08:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071216125519.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071206102304.htm A significant milestone for the Hubble Space Telescope successor, the James Webb Space Telescope, is on course to be reached before Christmas with the testing of the verification model of the Mid-InfraRed Instrument at the Rutherford Appleton Laboratory in Oxfordshire. Fri, 07 Dec 2007 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/12/071206102304.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071128155513.htm Venus is a hellish place of high temperatures and crushing air pressure. The European Space Agency's Venus Express mission adds into this mix the first confirmation that the Venusian atmosphere generates its own lightning. Scientists currently know of only three other planetary bodies in the entire universe that generate lightning -- Earth, Jupiter and Saturn. Thu, 29 Nov 2007 11:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071128155513.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071128151808.htm Scientists analyzing data gathered by the Cassini spacecraft have confirmed the presence of heavy negative ions in the upper regions of Titan's atmosphere. These particles may act as organic building blocks for even more complicated molecules and their discovery was completely unexpected because of the chemical composition of the atmosphere (which lacks oxygen and mainly consists of nitrogen and methane). The observation has now been verified on 16 different encounters. Thu, 29 Nov 2007 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071128151808.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071121215003.htm The formation of stars and planets in the universe is a delicate process. Clouds of gas and matter rotate and draw together under the influence of gravity. Pressure and temperature then rise, which eventually leads to the kindling of a new star with planets potentially orbiting it. Yet why does this happen at some locations in the universe and not at others? What are the conditions for star and planet formation? How does this process start and when does it stop? Fri, 23 Nov 2007 14:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071121215003.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071113085735.htm The Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) and NHK (Japan Broadcasting Corporation) have successfully performed the world's first high-definition image taking of an Earth-rise by the lunar explorer "KAGUYA" (SELENE), which was injected into a lunar orbit at an altitude of about 100 km on October 18, 2007. Wed, 14 Nov 2007 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071113085735.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071108113223.htm Recently, students around the world watched with bated breath as their creation, the second Young Engineers Satellite experiment, reached its dramatic conclusion. A day before the Foton-M3 spacecraft returned to Earth, a small re-entry capsule, named Fotino, was to be released from the end of a 30 km tether, the longest such structure ever to be deployed in space. Thu, 08 Nov 2007 00:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071108113223.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071105103013.htm Whose law will apply when Europe's Columbus space laboratory joins the US-led International Space Station in December? And what happens if astronauts from different countries get into a fight? Also, what legal nationality would a child born on the Moon have? Wed, 07 Nov 2007 05:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071105103013.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071105162405.htm XEUS, which stands for X-ray Evolving Universe Spectroscopy, aims to study the fundamental laws of the Universe. With unprecedented sensitivity to the hot, million-degree universe, XEUS will explore key areas of contemporary astrophysics: growth of supermassive black holes, cosmic feedback and galaxy evolution, evolution of large-scale structures, extreme gravity and matter under extreme conditions, the dynamical evolution of cosmic plasmas and cosmic chemistry. Tue, 06 Nov 2007 20:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071105162405.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071102125142.htm Space exploration is about to enter a third age where nations will cooperate to explore the solar system. Scientists predict that an imminent third phase of space exploration could inspire nations to work together in a spirit of discovery. Mon, 05 Nov 2007 02:00:00 EST http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/11/071102125142.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071024115241.htm A bold new mission to the Moon was launched by the Chinese National Space Administration. Chang'e-1 blasted off from the Xichang Satellite Launch Center, Sichuan, atop a Long March 3A rocket. This represents the first step in the Chinese ambition to land robotic explorers on the Moon before 2020. Thu, 25 Oct 2007 02:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071024115241.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071023103047.htm Italian astronaut Paolo Nespoli set off on his way to the International Space Station Oct. 23 on board NASA's Space Shuttle Discovery. Inside the Shuttle's cargo bay is the Node 2 module, the first European-built module to be permanently attached to the Station. Tue, 23 Oct 2007 20:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071023103047.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071019102623.htm On October 18 at 18:06 CEST, the thrusters of ESA's comet chaser, Rosetta, were fired in a planned, 42-second trajectory correction manoeuvre designed to "fine tune" the spacecraft's approach to Earth. Rosetta is now approaching Earth for its second planetary swing-by of 2007. Mon, 22 Oct 2007 23:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071019102623.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071019123623.htm Preparations of the European Columbus laboratory took an important step earlier with the final closure of the module's hatch ahead of the December launch to the International Space Station. They are now 99% ready for flight. Mon, 22 Oct 2007 05:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071019123623.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071016131504.htm TC-1, one of the two satellites of the CNSA/ESA Double Star mission, was decommissioned on Oct. 14 as its designed orbit lifetime came to an end. The satellite re-entered Earth's atmosphere and turned to dust during its descent. Fri, 19 Oct 2007 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071016131504.htm http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071016131439.htm The NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope has found out the true nature of a dwarf galaxy that astronomers had for a long time identified as one of the youngest galaxies in the Universe. Astronomers have made observations of the galaxy I Zwicky 18 which seem to indicate that it is in fact much older and much farther away than previously thought. Wed, 17 Oct 2007 08:00:00 EDT http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2007/10/071016131439.htm