ESA aims to send astronauts to the Moon on a European rocket

The European Space Agency is drawing up proposals over the next decade to develop spacecraft that could carry ESA astronauts into orbit and to the Moon, according to its Director General Joseph Eschbacher.

Speaking to the Financial Times before FT Invest in Space Summit In London, Eschbacher said it was important for Europe to develop an independent human launch capability in the rapidly developing global race for space.

“What is happening in the US, China and India is very impressive,” he said. “If you step back and look at where Europe stands globally, you will see that Europe is not engaged on an equal footing. I have seen a lot of opportunities, some of them lost opportunities.”

A recent independent report commissioned by ESA on human and robotic exploration of space found that there were more than 100 lunar missions announced before 2030 by both national space agencies and private companies. “Currently, Europe is leading only two of them,” it said.

reports noted that Europe had no independent human launch capability and relied on non-European partners to send people into space, “jeopardizing its future as a credible actor in space”.

Currently, ESA is working as a junior partner with the US space agency NASA on lunar exploration projects. “There is no timetable agreed upon (with NASA) for when a European astronaut will be on the Moon,” Eschbacher said, “but my hope is that we can achieve that before the end of the decade.”

Eschbacher said ESA’s program to develop a spacecraft capable of carrying European astronauts to low-Earth orbit could improve the way Europe manages space procurement.

NASA’s decision in the early 2000s to purchase cargo transportation services from the private sector, rather than develop its own vehicles, was the driver behind the rise of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, now the dominant launch provider. “That’s the model we’re discussing,” he said.

ESA was preparing “various scenarios and various cost estimates” to present at a meeting of member-state ministers in November. A decision on whether to go ahead with the fully funded program will be taken next year.

The agency, which is independent of the European Union but acts as its procurement agency, includes non-EU member states such as the UK and Switzerland. “Certainly we will have enough elements on the table for politicians to give us clear guidance on how Europe wants to move forward,” Eschbacher said.

However, Europe is still struggling to resolve a crisis over existing satellite launch capacity after Russia lost access to Soyuz rockets following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Its Ariane 5 rocket, which in April launched Europe’s €1.6bn Juice spacecraft on a mission to Jupiter’s icy moons, is set to make its last flight this month, while successor Ariane 6 is subject to a delay of 6 years. The new Vega C rocket is pending investigation of a failed mission last year.

But Eschbacher said Europe already has many of the building blocks needed to develop its human launch capability within the next decade.

These included the European Service Module, which provides power, water and oxygen to NASA’s Orion spacecraft that will send astronauts to the Moon. Europe also has an Automated Transport Vehicle that carries cargo to the International Space Station in low-Earth orbit every year.

While the Ariane 6 could eventually be upgraded to have human launch capability, this was not a given. “Other vehicles could be developed” in the same way that NASA’s strategy encouraged the emergence of SpaceX, he said.

In November, ESA unveiled 17 new members of its astronaut corps – including the world’s first disabled para-astronaut – at a ministerial summit in Paris, which increased spending by 17 percent to €16.9 billion over the next five years. agreed to do.

The European Space Agency is drawing up proposals over the next decade to develop spacecraft that could carry ESA astronauts into orbit and to the Moon, according to its Director General Joseph Eschbacher.

Speaking to the Financial Times before FT Invest in Space Summit In London, Eschbacher said it was important for Europe to develop an independent human launch capability in the rapidly developing global race for space.

“What is happening in the US, China and India is very impressive,” he said. “If you step back and look at where Europe stands globally, you will see that Europe is not engaged on an equal footing. I have seen a lot of opportunities, some of them lost opportunities.”

A recent independent report commissioned by ESA on human and robotic exploration of space found that there were more than 100 lunar missions announced before 2030 by both national space agencies and private companies. “Currently, Europe is leading only two of them,” it said.

reports noted that Europe had no independent human launch capability and relied on non-European partners to send people into space, “jeopardizing its future as a credible actor in space”.

Currently, ESA is working as a junior partner with the US space agency NASA on lunar exploration projects. “There is no timetable agreed upon (with NASA) for when a European astronaut will be on the Moon,” Eschbacher said, “but my hope is that we can achieve that before the end of the decade.”

Eschbacher said ESA’s program to develop a spacecraft capable of carrying European astronauts to low-Earth orbit could improve the way Europe manages space procurement.

NASA’s decision in the early 2000s to purchase cargo transportation services from the private sector, rather than develop its own vehicles, was the driver behind the rise of Elon Musk’s SpaceX, now the dominant launch provider. “That’s the model we’re discussing,” he said.

ESA was preparing “various scenarios and various cost estimates” to present at a meeting of member-state ministers in November. A decision on whether to go ahead with the fully funded program will be taken next year.

The agency, which is independent of the European Union but acts as its procurement agency, includes non-EU member states such as the UK and Switzerland. “Certainly we will have enough elements on the table for politicians to give us clear guidance on how Europe wants to move forward,” Eschbacher said.

However, Europe is still struggling to resolve a crisis over existing satellite launch capacity after Russia lost access to Soyuz rockets following Russia’s full-scale invasion of Ukraine. Its Ariane 5 rocket, which in April launched Europe’s €1.6bn Juice spacecraft on a mission to Jupiter’s icy moons, is set to make its last flight this month, while successor Ariane 6 is subject to a delay of 6 years. The new Vega C rocket is pending investigation of a failed mission last year.

But Eschbacher said Europe already has many of the building blocks needed to develop its human launch capability within the next decade.

These included the European Service Module, which provides power, water and oxygen to NASA’s Orion spacecraft that will send astronauts to the Moon. Europe also has an Automated Transport Vehicle that carries cargo to the International Space Station in low-Earth orbit every year.

While the Ariane 6 could eventually be upgraded to have human launch capability, this was not a given. “Other vehicles could be developed” in the same way that NASA’s strategy encouraged the emergence of SpaceX, he said.

In November, ESA unveiled 17 new members of its astronaut corps – including the world’s first disabled para-astronaut – at a ministerial summit in Paris, which increased spending by 17 percent to €16.9 billion over the next five years. agreed to do.