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 topicThis spectacular movie of the Sun was obtained by the XRT X-ray telescope on board the Hinode mission between January and April 2007. It shows the medium-term evolution of the dynamic corona of the Sun. The corona is a portion of the solar atmosphere that extends for million kilometres into space and is hotter than the Sun’s surface itself.