Elevation: ESA's interactive book
The interactive version of ESA's newest book, Elevation, is taking off online – read chapter 1 here. Stay tuned, the remaining chapters will be released throughout September.
Featuring content and images from the 144-page hardcover edition distributed to European ministers and delegates participating at ESA’s Ministerial Council in Bremen, Elevation recounts the full range of ESA’s activities through the lens of the Director General’s Strategy 2040. Each chapter explores one of the goals in Strategy 2040, with a carefully curated collection of images and videos – moments captured from everyday ESA activities, offering glimpses into how we work to elevate Europe’s future above and beyond.
As Director General Josef Aschbacher writes in his introduction: “I know from firsthand experience that images have power. In July 1969, as a seven-year-old boy on my family’s farm in Tyrol, Austria, I sat mesmerised before a grainy television screen, watching Neil Armstrong take humanity’s first steps on the Moon. That single moment lit a spark that shaped my life… This is how space takes hold of you: first through your eyes, then through your imagination.”
The book’s accompanying image captions point out behind-the-scenes details within the photos that might otherwise be missed. Many also include insights from the people who were there when the images were taken, including astronauts, engineers and professional photographers.
Each of the five themes of the book will be featured over the coming weeks. The first chapter is now available:
Read excerpts from the Director General’s foreword and introduction below.
FOREWORD
Read with care.
The book you hold is a carefully curated collection of images – moments chosen from the everyday activities of the European Space Agency, a set of glimpses into how we work to elevate Europe’s future above and beyond.
I know from firsthand experience that images have power.
In July 1969, as a seven-year-old boy on my family’s farm in Tyrol, Austria, I sat mesmerised before a grainy television screen, watching Neil Armstrong take humanity’s first steps on the Moon.
That single moment lit a spark that shaped my life – leading me to study geophysics and meteorology at the University of Innsbruck, and later to begin my career at ESA’s ESRIN centre in Italy. This is how space takes hold of you: first through your eyes, then through your imagination.
ESA today brings together more Member States than any other space agency and is unique in its breadth, working across every sector: launchers, telecommunications, space science, astronautics, space safety, Earth observation, and more.
The images in this book reflect that diversity. Each picture offers not only a window into our daily work but also the human stories behind it — from the scientists and engineers across Europe to ESA astronauts themselves. Captions highlight details that might otherwise be overlooked and explain ESA’s role in making each achievement possible.
Now is a pivotal moment for space in Europe. That’s why the collection is organised around the themes of Strategy 2040, our bold vision for Europe’s future in space. As you turn these pages, I hope you gain a sense of the inspiration and excitement driving the extraordinary set of people I have the privilege to lead.
Josef Aschbacher
ESA Director General
GO FOR ASCENT
ESA’s extraordinary saga of Europe in space began with signatures on a page
When the representatives of its founder Member States signed the European Space Agency into existence more than half a century ago, they could hardly have imagined the extraordinary journey that would unfold. How could they have foreseen it all? That from their signatures would spring the world’s most advanced Earth observation and satellite navigation systems. That Europe would land on a comet and send humankind’s farthest lander to touch down on Saturn’s Moon Titan, billions of kilometres away. That a European-made orbital lab and Earth-facing window would serve as two jewels in the crown of the International Space Station. That Europe would establish one of the world’s most successful rocket families and manufacture a significant proportion of the telecommunications satellites whose signals help bind the world together. That European space observatories would chart the faint afterglow of the Big Bang and map the structure of the cosmos at the very largest of scales. That a corps of European astronauts would serve at the forefront of international exploration while European engineering powers the spacecraft returning people to the Moon. And in the process Europe would nurture a cutting-edge space sector, winning success across international markets and that membership of ESA itself would grow to more than double its initial number of Member States, to serve a combined population of more than half a billion European citizens.
Since 1975 ESA has more than fulfilled the initial trust placed in it by its founders: to accomplish in space what no single European nation could achieve alone. Through steady, patient investment within a stable industrial and institutional environment, ongoing growth has led to a formidable set of industrial programmes, ambitious one-off missions and numerous international partnerships. And the resulting European space industry stands shoulder to shoulder with the very best in the world. But the world – and space – is changing. Half a century into Europe’s journey into infinity, our existing approach is no longer sufficient. The landscape of space is transforming rapidly, and ESA and the European space sector must transform with it. The rest of the Universe beyond the fringes of our atmosphere was once a well-kept secret. No more; the economic and strategic importance of space has become clear for all to see. Hence the steadily increasing public and private investment in space from the US, China and India, among other nations. The motive behind this general uptick in interest is no mystery. Space has become a cornerstone of daily life and economic growth, underpinning navigation, communication, weather forecasting, climate monitoring and precision timing – collectively adding up to a sizeable proportion of European GDP. At the same time physical space is increasingly inseparable from cyberspace – as a means of acquiring and sharing data – to become a vital focus of investment for mainstream markets. And this ultimate high ground is also proving a decisive consideration for defence and security as well. The result is that Europe now stands at a crossroads. To persist with modest, incremental investment is to risk falling behind – losing competitiveness, growth and ultimately strategic autonomy. What is instead needed is nothing less than a bold new vision, to take account of the ground moving beyond our feet, anticipate change and disruption ahead of time and address future needs with agile, flexible decision making.
That vision is ESA’s Strategy 2040.
Its mission: to safeguard Europe’s competitiveness, growth, autonomy and resilience. To ensure space can respond to society’s needs across all scales – regional, national and European. To maintain Europe as a top-tier space power. To expand into novel markets and frontier technologies. And to present a coherent, long-term narrative that can unite and guide decision makers across multiple funding cycles.
Strategy 2040 is built on five themes, each rooted in today’s work while stretching towards tomorrow’s challenges:
PROTECT OUR PLANET AND CLIMATE
Europe’s satellites watching over Earth against threats ranging from climate change to space debris
EXPLORE AND DISCOVER
Pushing the limits of human knowledge while extending human presence into the Solar System
STRENGTHEN EUROPEAN AUTONOMY AND RESILIENCE
Ensuring our continent’s independence and readiness for whatever tomorrow holds
BOOST EUROPEAN GROWTH AND COMPETITIVENESS
Harnessing space to foster a vibrant educational, technological and industrial ecosystem
INSPIRE EUROPE
Coming together to accomplish more, inspire ambition and elevate our common future
At a time when Europe’s place in the world has been shrinking – economically, geopolitically and technologically – Strategy 2040 amounts to a call to rise higher. It challenges us to confront climate change and biodiversity loss among other dangers, while elevating European prosperity, resilience and global leadership.
A successful Europe can only be one that continues to look upward – beyond borders, beyond current limits, towards the infinite possibilities of space.