On March 12, 2025, ESA’s Hera spacecraft pulled off something pretty special—a rare close flyby of Mars and its tiny moon Deimos. The spacecraft flew just 5,000 kilometers above the Martian surface and skimmed within 300 kilometers of Deimos. During the pass, Hera’s Asteroid Framing Camera captured stunning footage, later enhanced with color to highlight known surface features. The result? A rare and breathtaking look at these two distant worlds.
European Space Agency engineers have developed a revolutionary antenna technology that could dramatically reduce the complexity, weight and power consumption of next-generation communication systems. The innovation leverages the natural symmetry of antenna arrays to eliminate half the components typically needed in beamforming systems. Tested in ESA’s echo-free chamber that simulates the vacuum of space, the … Read more
Scientists have discovered that Mars’ iconic rust-red appearance likely developed in a wetter environment than previously thought, challenging a longstanding theory about the planet’s geological history. For decades, researchers believed the Red Planet got its distinctive hue from anhydrous hematite, an iron oxide that forms in dry conditions. But a new study published in Nature … Read more
In a vast warehouse in Cologne, Germany, astronauts are walking on the Moon without ever leaving Earth. The European Space Agency’s LUNA facility, a 700-square-metre terrain filled with 900 tonnes of artificial lunar dust, is now combining physical simulation with virtual reality to prepare humans for returning to the lunar surface. The stark contrast between … Read more
Not Affiliated with the European Space Agency, Just Covering It