ESA Top News http://www.esa.int ESA Top Newsspaceen-us600Copyright 2012 European Space Agencyrss@esa.intFri, 10 Feb 2012 14:28:19 GMTFri, 10 Feb 2012 14:28:19 GMThttp://blogs.law.harvard.edu/tech/rss Could Venus be shifting gear? ESA’s Venus Express spacecraft has discovered that our cloud-covered neighbour spins a little slower than previously measured. Peering through the dense atmosphere in the infrared, the orbiter found surface features were not quite where they should be. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM0TLSXXXG_index_0.html SEM0TLSXXXGFri, 10 Feb 2012 11:10:00 GMT Watch ‘Mountains of snow’ on the Earth from Space programme Discover more about our planet with the Earth from Space video programme. Join us every Friday at 10:00 CET for an 800 km-high tour with spectacular images from Earth-observing satellites.

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]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM9AAWX7YG_index_0.html SEM9AAWX7YGFri, 10 Feb 2012 09:00:00 GMT Watch online: Vega qualification flight Join us for the first qualification flight of the Vega launch vehicle on Monday 13 February, with a launch window open from 11:00 to 13:00 CET (10:00 to 12:00 GMT). Vega will lift off from Europe's Spaceport in Kourou, French Guiana, to release nine satellites into orbit and add a new capability to Europe's fleet of launch systems. Live transmission starts at 10:40 CET.

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]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM5Y9WX7YG_index_0.html SEM5Y9WX7YGFri, 10 Feb 2012 08:42:00 GMT Rockot to launch two Sentinel satellites ESA and Eurockot today signed contracts for launching two ESA satellites: Sentinel-2A and Sentinel-3A will fly in 2013 on Rockot vehicles from the Plesetsk Cosmodrome in northern Russia for Europe’s GMES programme. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM7MMVX7YG_index_0.html SEM7MMVX7YGThu, 09 Feb 2012 13:20:00 GMT Europe’s ATV space ferry set for launch to Space Station Fuel, water, oxygen, air and most of the dry cargo have been loaded into ESA's third Automated Transfer Vehicle, Edoardo Amaldi, as the 9 March liftoff approaches. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMRNPVX7YG_index_0.html SEMRNPVX7YGWed, 08 Feb 2012 09:04:00 GMT Astronauts seen and heard: satcoms for the Space Station Seeing ESA astronaut André Kuipers on the International Space Station is a regular occurrence these days. You turn on your TV or check Twitter and there he is. Since there are no cables trailing from the Station to Earth, just how does this happen? ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM7GSVX7YG_index_0.html SEM7GSVX7YGTue, 07 Feb 2012 07:51:00 GMT ESA's Mars Express radar gives strong evidence for former Mars ocean ESA's Mars Express has returned strong evidence for an ocean once covering part of Mars. Using radar, it has detected sediments reminiscent of an ocean floor within the boundaries of previously identified, ancient shorelines on Mars. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMVINVX7YG_index_0.html SEMVINVX7YGMon, 06 Feb 2012 14:00:00 GMT Augmented reality promises astronauts instant medical knowhow A new augmented reality unit developed by ESA can provide just-in-time medical expertise to astronauts. All they need to do is put on a head-mounted display for 3D guidance in diagnosing problems or even performing surgery. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMHSTSXXXG_index_0.html SEMHSTSXXXGMon, 06 Feb 2012 04:25:00 GMT Mars Express reveals wind-blown deposits on Mars New images from ESA’s Mars Express show the Syrtis Major region on Mars. Once thought to be a sea of water, the region is now known to be a volcanic province dating back billions of years. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM1NHTXXXG_index_0.html SEM1NHTXXXGFri, 03 Feb 2012 13:00:00 GMT Vega set for its inaugural flight PR 2 2012 - On 13 February, the European Space Agency will perform the first qualification flight of its brand new Vega launch vehicle. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMZM4TXXXG_index_0.html SEMZM4TXXXGFri, 03 Feb 2012 06:28:00 GMT Eight more Galileo navsats agreed ESA today signed a contract to build a further eight Galileo satellites, alongside other agreements to modify Europe’s Ariane 5 launcher to carry four navigation satellites at a time. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM825TXXXG_index_0.html SEM825TXXXGThu, 02 Feb 2012 10:07:00 GMT Voyage to the most isolated base on Earth Alexander Kumar, the next ESA-sponsored crewmember to stay in Concordia, has arrived safely at the research base in Antarctica. The voyage to one of the remotest places on Earth takes even longer than the voyage to the International Space Station. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMVGAI8RXG_index_0.html SEMVGAI8RXGFri, 27 Jan 2012 13:33:00 GMT First Vega rocket assembled on launch pad ESA’s new Vega rocket is now fully assembled on its launch pad. Final preparations are in full swing for the rocket’s inaugural flight from Europe’s Spaceport. The launch window opens on 9 February. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMDA5I8RXG_index_0.html SEMDA5I8RXGFri, 27 Jan 2012 07:49:00 GMT Robot competition in zero-gravity School teams from Europe and America have been commanding robots competing in the Spheres ZeroRobotics tournament in space. The arena: 400 km above Earth on the International Space Station. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMN6SH8RXG_index_0.html SEMN6SH8RXGWed, 25 Jan 2012 09:10:00 GMT Solar storm heading toward Earth A large solar flare yesterday triggered a coronal mass ejection travelling at 1400 km/s that will reach Earth today. An energetic eruption of this level can disrupt satellites, so operation teams at ESA and other organisations are closely monitoring the storm. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM8LSH8RXG_index_0.html SEM8LSH8RXGTue, 24 Jan 2012 16:11:00 GMT Happy New Year from space! An out-of-this-world Season's Greetings from the astronauts aboard the International Space Station, including ESA's André Kuipers.

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]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMYSOGXTWG_index_0.html SEMYSOGXTWGMon, 02 Jan 2012 08:00:00 GMT ESA astronaut André Kuipers arrives at the Space Station ESA astronaut André Kuipers and crewmates Oleg Kononeko and Don Pettit docked today with the International Space Station in their Soyuz TMA-03M spacecraft. They will work aboard the Station now for five months and return to Earth in May. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMJTOBX9WG_index_0.html SEMJTOBX9WGFri, 23 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT CryoSat ice satellite rides new waves ESA’s CryoSat mission has been gathering detailed information on the thickness of Earth’s ice since its launch in 2010. Through international collaboration, this state-of-the-art mission is soon to be used to monitor conditions at sea for marine forecasting. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMI2KBX9WG_index_0.html SEMI2KBX9WGThu, 22 Dec 2011 11:37:00 GMT ESA astronaut André Kuipers on his way to the International Space Station PR 37 2011 - After their launch from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan at 13:16 GMT (14:16 CET) today, ESA astronaut André Kuipers and crewmates Oleg Kononenko and Don Pettit are circling Earth every 90 minutes aboard the Soyuz TMA-3M spacecraft as they make their way to the International Space Station. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEMWT8BX9WG_index_0.html SEMWT8BX9WGWed, 21 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT Star images helping to save Vatican books Antique books in the Vatican Library are being digitised to preserve them for future generations using a technique developed through ESA to store satellite images of the sky. ]]> http://www.esa.int/esaCP/SEM01RAX9WG_index_0.html SEM01RAX9WGMon, 19 Dec 2011 08:00:00 GMT