ESA > Our Activities > Operations > Estrack

Listening for Cassini

Operations image of the week: ESA’s deep-space dish antennas in Argentina and Australia get ready for science with the international Cassini orbiter

Sunburnt country

Operations image of the week: ESA’s deep-space dish at New Norcia squats on some of Australia’s famously iron-rich soils

Year in images

Our year through the lens: a selection of our favourite Operations images for 2016

Winter Moon

Operations image of the week: ESA’s tracking station at Maspalomas seen by the light of a winter Moon

Spinning station

Operations image of the week: A timelapse image makes our deep-space dish in Spain seem to spin

The last command

Operations image of the week: Last command being sent to Rosetta

Drone inspection

Operations image of the week: A drone’s view of our deep-space dish in Spain

The longest call

Operations image of the week: ESA’s deep-space tracking station in Australia makes the longest-ever ‘catch’ for the Agency

Over the rainbow

Operations image of the week: ESA’s deep-space tracking station in Argentina framed by a rainbow and highlighted by the Sun

Comet relay

Operations image of the week: ESA’s deep-space tracking station in Argentina seen while relaying signals from Philae in 2014

Latest News

Views of ESA's 35m ESTRACK deep-space tracking station at Malargüe, Argentina, now supporting many of the Agency's most important exploration missions, including Rosetta, Mars Express, ExoMars, LISA Pathfinder and Gaia.

ESA boosting its Argentine link with deep space25 April 2017

ESA boosting its Argentine link with deep space25 April 2017 Thanks to some high-tech improvements, ESA’s radio dish in Argentina will be ready to receive the rising torrent of scientific data beamed back by future missions exploring deep in our Solar System.

This view shows Saturn's northern hemisphere in 2016, as that part of the planet nears its northern hemisphere summer solstice in May 2017

Catching Cassini’s call13 January 2017

Catching Cassini’s call13 January 2017 This week, ESA deep-space radio dishes on two continents are listening for signals from the international Cassini spacecraft, now on its final tour of Saturn.

Ready for the Red Planet14 October 2016

Ready for the Red Planet14 October 2016 Next week, ESA’s ExoMars has just a single chance to get captured by Mars’ gravity. The spacecraft and the mission controllers who will make it so are ready for arrival.

In 2016/2017, ESA's former Perth station will be relocated to Santa Maria Island, in the Azores, to be returned to service as an Earth mission tracking facility operated by European industry.

Recycling a space antenna07 September 2016

Recycling a space antenna07 September 2016 A decommissioned ESA ground station from Australia will be returned to service in the Azores, highlighting an innovative reuse that benefits both the Agency and European industry.

In 2016, NASA's Cassini mission will begin its final 'Grand Finale' and ESA’s superbly sensitive deep-space tracking stations will be called in to help gather crucial radio science data.

Most distant catch for ESA station18 August 2016

Most distant catch for ESA station18 August 2016 An ESA tracking station has acquired signals from the international Cassini spacecraft orbiting Saturn, across more than 1.4 billion km of space.

ESOC serves as the Operations Control Centre for ESA missions

European space operations experts at the Berlin Air and Space Show31 May 2016

European space operations experts at the Berlin Air and Space Show31 May 2016 ESA will be exhibiting in the ‘Space for Earth’ pavilion (Hall 4) at ILA – one of the world’s largest aerospace trade shows – this week.

News Archive