Representing the runup to a crucial Council at Ministerial Level, 2025 was a busy year for Earth observation, seeing the launch of multiple Copernicus Sentinel satellites, weather satellites and the innovative Biomass forest-mapping mission. It also saw Polish ESA project astronaut Sławosz Uznański-Wiśniewski’s visit to the ISS. This edition features in-depth articles covering the half-century anniversary of ESA’s founding, the first 30 years of ESA navigation efforts, Euclid’s mission to the ‘dark Universe’, the ongoing expansion of ESA’s Business Incubation Centre network and the first artificial solar eclipse in space, performed by the agency’s Proba-3 mission.