Artists impression of ESAs ExoMars rover (foreground) and Russias science platform (background) on Mars. Credit: ESA/ATG medialab
As an intergovernmental organization mandated to execute and develop area programs completely regard with European worths, we deeply deplore the human casualties and tragic repercussions of the hostility towards Ukraine. While recognizing the effect on scientific exploration of space, ESA is totally aligned with the sanctions imposed on Russia by its Member States.
ExoMars
ESAs ruling Council, conference in Paris on March 16-17, assessed the scenario emerging from the war in Ukraine relating to ExoMars, and all:
Subsequently, the ESA Director General has actually initiated an evaluation on potential alternative launch services for these objectives, which will include an evaluation of the Ariane 6 first exploitation flights. A robust launch manifest for ESA objectives launch requirements, consisting of for spacecraft originally prepared for launch by Soyuz from Kourou, will be sent to Member States.
The International Space Station
The International Space Station Programme continues to operate nominally. The main objective is to continue safe operations of the ISS, including preserving the safety of the team.
Way forward
Based on a very first analysis of programmatic and technical effect on all other activities affected by the war in Ukraine, the Director General intends to assemble an extraordinary session of Council in the coming weeks to submit specific propositions for decision by Member States.
About the European Space Agency
The European Space Agency (ESA) provides Europes entrance to area.
ESA is an intergovernmental organization, developed in 1975, with the mission to form the development of Europes space capability and ensure that financial investment in space provides advantages to the residents of Europe and the world.
ESA has 22 Member States: Austria, Belgium, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the United Kingdom. Slovenia, Latvia, and Lithuania are Associate Members.
ESA has established official cooperation with 6 Member States of the EU. Canada participates in some ESA programs under a Cooperation Agreement.
By coordinating the financial and intellectual resources of its members, ESA can undertake programs and activities far beyond the scope of any single European nation. It is operating in specific with the EU on carrying out the Galileo and Copernicus programs as well as with Eumetsat for the development of meteorological missions.
acknowledged today impossibility of carrying out the ongoing cooperation with Roscosmos on the ExoMars rover mission with a launch in 2022, and mandated the ESA Director General to take suitable steps to suspend the cooperation activities appropriately;
authorized the ESA Director General to perform a fast-track industrial research study to much better specify the readily available choices for a way forward to execute the ExoMars rover objective.
Space Transportation
Following the decision by Roscosmos to withdraw their personnel from Europes Spaceport in French Guiana, all objectives arranged for launch by Soyuz have been put on hold. These concern essentially 4 institutional missions for which ESA is the launch service procurement entity (Galileo M10, Galileo M11, Euclid and EarthCare) and one extra institutional launch.