Name: Community Workshop: The Mission to Enceladus – The ESA L4 Mission
Start: 2026-12-08T00:00:00-05:00
End: 2026-12-10T23:59:59-05:00
Location: ESTEC

Community Workshop: The Mission to Enceladus – The ESA L4 Mission

by Keith CowingAugust 15, 2026August 15, 2026

The community workshop at ESTEC focused on “The Mission to Enceladus – The ESA L4 Mission” will be held at ESTEC December 8-10, 2026. The workshop will have a dual […]

This photo captures the spacecraft standing inside the special chamber. The shielded enclosure features conducting metal walls, floor, and ceiling that form a Faraday cage, screening out all external interference. Its 9 m-high interior is lined floor to ceiling with foam spikes that absorb electrical signals and sounds to mimic the void of space. -- ESA

PLATO

Terrestrial Planet Hunter Plato Electronics Pass Pre-launch Tests

by Keith CowingJuly 20, 2026July 20, 2026

[ESA] The European Space Agency’s terrestrial planet hunter Plato has recently completed a series of key tests inside the Maxwell Test Chamber at ESTEC, demonstrating that its electronic equipment is […]

After arrival at ESTEC, the European Space Agency’s Plato spacecraft was unloaded from its container and moved into the cleanroom. Here it is tilted to a horizontal position on a rolling platform. The spacecraft is under protective film, and all 26 cameras have gold-coloured covers. Credit ESA-SJM Photography larger image

Astronomy & Telescopes, Atmospheres, Climate, Weather, Biosignatures & Paleobiology, Exoplanets, -moons, -comets, Imaging & Spectroscopy, PLATO, Press Release

Plato Habitable Planet Observing Telescope Arrives at ESTEC

by Keith CowingSeptember 12, 2025April 27, 2026

The European Space Agency’s Plato spacecraft has safely arrived at ESTEC, ESA’s technical heart in the Netherlands. There, engineers will complete the spacecraft by connecting its solar panels and sunshield, […]