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operations.esa.int
ESA Operations
@operations.esa.int
5.8K followers 36 following 260 posts
From Earth orbit to deep space: sharing the excitement of real-time mission operations at the European Space Agency. Home for ESA's teams working on Planetary Defence, Space Weather, Clean Space & Space Debris.
esa.int/Operations
esa.int/Space_Safety
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operations.esa.int
In 2025, 10 asteroids were named after people and places associated with @esa.int's efforts to discover, monitor, explore and keep Earth safe from asteroids.

Well done Planetary Defence team, you rock! 😉☄️

www.esa.int/Space_Safety...
Photo of ESA's Planetary Defence team Visuaisation of the orbits of 10 asteroids and one comet named after people and places associated with ESA's Planetary Defence activities in 2025
January 13, 2026 at 1:04 PM
operations.esa.int
Third poster in our series: "Space Safety - in action!"

Mission: Ramses
Objective: Intercept and explore the asteroid Apophis as it passes Earth in 2029
Unique feature: Ramses capitalises on a one-in-7000-year scientific opportunity
Launch: 2028

Download at: esa.int/space-safety/in-action
Stylised poster depicting the ESA-JAXA Ramses mission to asteroid Apophis
December 19, 2025 at 8:55 AM
operations.esa.int
🛫 ☀️ When the Sun disrupts aviation

Did you know that #SpaceWeather can affect flights in surprising ways?

One phenomenon gaining attention is the impact of energetic charged particles - originating from our Sun and even distant stars - on aircraft electronics.

www.esa.int/Space_Safety...
December 15, 2025 at 4:24 PM
operations.esa.int
What really happens to a satellite during a fiery reentry into the atmosphere? ESA’s Draco will find out! 🛰️🐦‍🔥 Check out the trailer for our Space Safety mission 'built for destruction'.

More on Draco 👉 www.esa.int/ESA_Multimed...
December 12, 2025 at 1:25 PM
operations.esa.int
Second poster in our series: "Space Safety - in action!"

Mission: RISE
Objective: Extend the lifetime of a satellite in geostationary orbit
Unique feature: After initial demo, D-Orbit will continue to operate RISE as a commercial service
Launch: 2029

Download at: esa.int/space-safety/in-action
Stylised poster depicting ESA's RISE satellite docking with another satellite in Earth orbit
December 11, 2025 at 11:18 AM
operations.esa.int
Check out the first poster in our new series: "Space Safety - in action!"

Mission: Vigil
Objective: Advanced warning of solar storms
Unique feature: Location in deep space offers 'side-on' view of solar material heading towards Earth
Launch: 2031

Download the poster at:
www.esa.int/Space_Safety...
Stylised poster depicting spacecraft watching the Sun with Earth depicted below
December 8, 2025 at 2:05 PM
operations.esa.int
📡 2025 marked a landmark year for #Estrack, ESA’s global network of ground stations.

Since its inception in 1975, Estrack has formed a vital communication bridge between satellites in orbit and mission control at the European Space Operations Centre (ESOC).

www.esa.int/About_Us/ESA...
December 2, 2025 at 10:06 AM
operations.esa.int
☀️ Lessons from the November 2025 solar storm

Last week, Earth was hit by a large solar storm. The event provided an opportunity for multiple ESA missions, whether orbiting Earth or far into deep space, to collect radiation data, which is now being analysed.

www.esa.int/Space_Safety...
November 21, 2025 at 3:23 PM
operations.esa.int
☄️ 40 000 near-Earth asteroids discovered!

Thankfully, none of them are cause for concern for the foreseeable future, but ESA's planetary defence teams are keeping a watchful eye on the skies.

www.esa.int/Space_Safety...
November 20, 2025 at 9:16 AM
operations.esa.int
☀️ ESA actively monitoring severe space weather event

On 11 November, an intense solar flare was observed, followed by a coronal mass ejection estimated to arrive at Earth in the late evening today or in the early morning tomorrow.

www.esa.int/Space_Safety...
November 12, 2025 at 2:45 PM
operations.esa.int
That’s it from us on Copernicus Sentinel-1D! If you like launches, don't forget to tune back for the launch of Copernicus Sentinel-6B later this month.

📷ESA - J. Mai
ESA mission control room with multiple computer monitors displaying spacecraft data and status information, overseen by Flight Operations Director Ian Shurmer.
November 4, 2025 at 11:35 PM
operations.esa.int
The teams at ESA mission control will now spend around 10 hours carefully unfolding Copernicus's Sentinel-1D’s 12 m radar and two 10 m solar wings. The satellite’s unique deployment sequence was designed to ensure that these complex structures all deploy in the safest possible way.

📷ESA/Mlabspace
Close-up of Sentinel-1D Satellite over Earth.
November 4, 2025 at 11:29 PM
operations.esa.int
We hear you, Copernicus Sentinel-1D! KSAT Kongsberg’s Troll Satellite Ground Station in Antarctica, has received the first signals from the satellite. The orbit has been reached and telemetry has begun to arrive at ESA's mission control in Darmstadt!
Several large dome antennas from KSAT Troll Satellite Ground Station in Antarctica. The structures are mounted on metal frameworks and platforms, with a rugged landscape and patches of snow visible in the background.
November 4, 2025 at 10:23 PM
operations.esa.int
The Copernicus Sentinel-1D satellite will enhance our planet's radar vision. It will join the fleet of Sentinels operated from ESA’s mission control centre in Darmstadt, which includes Sentinel-1A. 1C, 2A, 2B, 2C & 5P. We also helped get Sentinel-3A, 3B & 6 up & running post-launch.

🎥ESA/Mlabspace
November 4, 2025 at 7:38 PM
operations.esa.int
One of the simulation exercises made them face a solar storm of extreme magnitude. While we wait for the next launch preparation phase, we encourage you to take a look at the consequences of this nightmare scenario: www.esa.int/Space_Safety...

📷ESA & NASA/Solar Orbiter/EUI Team
November 4, 2025 at 5:48 PM
operations.esa.int
ESOC mission control has never been more ready. Over the last weeks, our teams have been rehearsing the Copernicus Sentinel-1D launch and crucial early-orbit phase in a set of simulation sessions. Read more about it at: www.esa.int/Enabling_Sup...

📷ESA - J. Mai
A person in an ESA mission control room leans over a desk with computer monitors and keyboards, appearing to interact with the workstation. The background shows other personnel seated at consoles, large display boards with data, and the ESA logo on the wall. The setting is modern, with bright lighting and a high-tech environment.
November 4, 2025 at 5:29 PM
operations.esa.int
The Copernicus Sentinel-1D ‘Network Countdown’ has begun. Launch, communication and control facilities around the world have begun a synchronised sequence of activities to prepare for liftoff at 22:02 CET tonight and the crucial hours that follow. 🚀Watch live at esawebtv.esa.int
📷ESA - J. Mai
ESA’s ESOC facility with multiple large screens displaying data and status information. Several workstations with computers and keyboards are arranged in rows, and personnel in white shirts with ESA logos are monitoring spacecraft operations. The environment is filled with technical equipment, cables, and mission-related materials.
November 4, 2025 at 3:02 PM
operations.esa.int
The bolide was preceded almost an hour before, at 19:42 CET, by a meteor that lit up the skies for around 8 to 10 seconds. Despite the close timing, the two events followed distinct trajectories, indicating they were likely unrelated.

Credit: ESA/PDO/AMS82 - AllSky7
November 4, 2025 at 1:49 PM
operations.esa.int
The object appeared 97 km above Lousã, Castelo Branco, before disintegrating at an altitude of 43 km above Amiosinho, Coimbra, both in Portugal.
November 4, 2025 at 1:49 PM
operations.esa.int
☄️ Fireball observed over Spain and Portugal!

On 2 November 2025 at 20:41 CET, ESA’s fireball camera in Cáceres, Spain, recorded a bright bolide streaking northwest over Portugal. It was travelling at approximately 81 000 km/h.

Credit: ESA/PDO/AMS82 - AllSky7

www.esa.int/ESA_Multimed...
November 4, 2025 at 1:49 PM
operations.esa.int
Meanwhile, the Juice team recently validated their backup control facility at ESA’s deep space ground in Cebreros, Spain.

They successfully took control of Juice in a simulated emergency and demonstrated that ESA can stay connected to its interplanetary fleet, even if ESOC goes offline.
The Juice control team testing back-up spacecraft control facilities at ESA's deep space station in Spain Members of the Juice control team in front of ESA's deep space antenna in Spain
October 24, 2025 at 2:22 PM
operations.esa.int
The commands for the observations were prepared today at ESA’s ESOC mission control in Darmstadt, Germany.

Juice is designed to study Jupiter and its moons. Planning observations of an entirely different object at short notice required some complex geometry, and precise timing!
The control team at ESA mission control plans Juice's observations of 3I/ATLAS
October 24, 2025 at 2:22 PM
operations.esa.int
Juice will observe 3I/ATLAS from 2—25 November 2025, while the comet is near perihelion – its closest point to the Sun ☀️

That’s when comets are at their most active, often featuring a glowing coma around the nucleus and dramatic tails.
Infographic depicting where and when ESA spacecraft will observe the interstellar com 3I/ATLAS
October 24, 2025 at 2:22 PM
operations.esa.int
ESA’s Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) spacecraft is ready to aim its instruments at interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS! 🪐☄️

Here’s what’s happening and why it’s such a rare opportunity 🧵
Artist's impression of ESA's Jupiter Icy Moons Explorer (Juice) spacecraft Interstellar comet 3I/ATLAS seen by the NASA/ESA Hubble Space Telescope
October 24, 2025 at 2:22 PM
operations.esa.int
ESA will send a plane filled with scientists and instruments to observe the reentries of Samba and Tango from below and learn as much as possible about how satellites burn and break up during atmospheric reentry.
Artist's impression of one of ESA's Cluster satellites burning up during atmospheric reentry
October 24, 2025 at 7:26 AM