N° 9–2025: Media Invitation: ESA High-Performance Computing Inauguration

This state-of-the-art computing infrastructure marks a significant step towards making ESA a more data-driven organisation, enabling innovation, industrial development, and the future of European space exploration. 

What is the Space HPC? 

The Space HPC is a cutting-edge computational environment designed to process massive datasets, run complex simulations, and accelerate artificial intelligence applications for ESA missions. It provides unprecedented computing power to enhance mission planning, satellite operations, and space technology development while also offering advanced AI capabilities to support data analysis, machine learning, and scientific research. 

Beyond its role in space exploration, the Space HPC will serve as a critical infrastructure for powering the connected digital economy, aligning with the European Green Deal and Digital Agenda. Designed as a flexible HPC infrastructure, it supports R&D, testing, and rapid benchmarking for ESA programmes, industrial players, and researchers. It is intentionally scaled to add significant value while remaining complementary to national and European HPC infrastructures, rather than competing with them. 

As a demonstrator infrastructure, the Space HPC aims to accelerate innovation, help industry de-risk data, modelling, and simulations, and foster the development of R&D applications, ensuring a secure environment for industrial collaboration while boosting European competitiveness in space innovation and research 

Event Programme 

Location: ESA ESRIN, Frascati, Italy 

09:30 – Welcome Introductions and Speeches 

• Josef Aschbacher, Director General, ESA 

• Representative of the Minister of Enterprises and Made in Italy 

• Renato Krpoun, ESA Council Chair 

• Representative of the European Commission 

09:50 – Introduction to ESA ESRIN 

• Simonetta Cheli, Director of Earth Observation Programmes and Head of ESRIN, ESA 

10:00 – Space HPC Overview and Key Facts 

• Bianca Hoersch, Acting Head of Cabinet (former Chief Digital Officer), ESA 

10:05 – Key Use Cases from ESA Programmes 

• Hydrology – Diego Fernandez  

• Disaster Management – Pierre Philippe Mathieu 

• Land Management / Food Security – Albrecht Schmidt  

• Glacier Ice loss and Impact – Peter Naylor  

• Mars Elevation Mapping – Pablo Gomez 

• Space Weather Modelling – Jorge Amaya 

10:45 – Transfer to HPC Facility 

10:55 – Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony & Photo Session 

11:30 – Media Activities  

13:30 – End of Event 

Registration 

To attend this event, please register via the Media form – ESA forms by 10 March 2025.  

As places are limited, ESA cannot guarantee participation for all interested media. 

Contact 

ESA Newsroom and Media Relations 

Email: media@esa.int 

Images

https://www.esa-photolibrary.com/ 

Terms and conditions for using ESA images 

For questions or more information related to ESA images, please contact directly spaceinimages@esa.int

Videos

ESA's Video Library for Professionals: 

https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Videos 

Terms and conditions for using ESA videos 

For questions or more information related to ESA videos, please contact directly spaceinvideos@esa.int

Social Media

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About the European Space Agency

The European Space Agency (ESA) provides Europe’s gateway to space. 

ESA is an intergovernmental organisation, created in 1975, with the mission to shape the development of Europe’s space capability and ensure that investment in space delivers benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world. 

ESA has 23 Member States: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Latvia, Lithuania and Slovakia are Associate Members. 

ESA has established formal cooperation with other four Member States of the EU. Canada takes part in some ESA programmes under a Cooperation Agreement. 

By coordinating the financial and intellectual resources of its members, ESA can undertake programmes and activities far beyond the scope of any single European country. It is working in particular with the EU on implementing the Galileo and Copernicus programmes as well as with Eumetsat for the development of meteorological missions. 

Learn more about ESA at www.esa.int