ESA News

Image: Hera takes wing

Spain’s trio of ANSER CubeSats, due to fly on Europe’s next Vega launcher, will fly like a flock of birds in orbit – in more ways than one. Keeping in formation by following their leader, the three shoebox-sized satellites will image Iberian waters as if they are a single standard-sized mission. And they will unfurl wing-like flaps to maintain their relative positions, surfing on the scanty airflow at the top of Earth’s atmosphere.

Video: 00:03:20 ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen became commander of the International Space Station (ISS) on September 26, 2023, in a traditional ceremony in which the departing commander, Sergey Prokopyev, handed over the symbolic key of the Space Station. Mogensen is the sixth European to take on the role of ISS commander.Mogensen will serve as commander for the rest of his Huginn mission until early 2024. During his command, he will be responsible for overseeing the crew's activities and ensuring the safety and operation of the Space Station.

Video: 00:05:46 ESA astronaut Andreas Mogensen has begun his Huginn mission, turning the International Space Station into his home and workplace. After piloting on Crew Dragon Endurance as the first non-US pilot, Andreas has started performing European experiments and technology demonstrations with many more to come throughout the mission.

Fungi in space have been a plot point in Star Trek: Discovery, but they are also a very real problem for astronauts and space stations. United Nations co-sponsored testing by a team from Macau in China subjected fungi to hypergravity with ESA’s fast-spinning centrifuge.

Huginn - piloting the Dragon Huginn

In March, we announced that 2023 would see the publication of over 300 vacancies at ESA. New vacancies keep being published as we continue our search for talented and motivated professionals to join our teams across Europe and support our mission of the peaceful exploration of space for the benefit of everyone. Could ESA be the next step in your career? Read more to find out!