Earth Explorer 12 Ideas Sought by ESA
ESA is seeking ideas for its Earth Explorer 12 mission under its FutureEO research and development program. The Call for Ideas, the first step in developing a brand-new European flagship satellite mission, was released Tuesday.
“The importance of developing new Earth observation missions to improve our scientific understanding of the Earth system to better respond to the climate crisis was strongly supported by ministers at ESA’s Council at Ministerial Level in November."
Simonetta Cheli, ESA’s Director of Earth Observation Programs.
Understanding Earth’s delicate natural balance and how it is being altered by human activity is not only key to advancing science but also fundamental to acting on environmental issues, the climate crisis, and preparing for their societal impact. With their hallmark of demonstrating novel space technologies and returning scientific excellence, ESA’s family of Earth observing Earth Explorer research satellite missions are world-renowned – and now it’s time for scientists to pitch their new ideas for the Earth Explorer 12 mission.
Importantly, Earth Explorer missions are built in response to the needs of the scientific community in their quest to understand different aspects of the Earth system and the interactions that bind the system as a whole.
Earth Explorer 12 Builds on a Legacy of Environmental Science
With Earth science at the heart of the program, FutureEO focuses on harnessing new ideas to develop these pioneering satellite missions and concepts that enable scientific excellence to flourish, and thereby address pressing environmental and climate challenges.
These missions demonstrate how breakthrough technology can deliver an astounding range of scientific findings about our planet.
“The importance of developing new Earth observation missions to improve our scientific understanding of the Earth system to better respond to the climate crisis was strongly supported by ministers at ESA’s Council at Ministerial Level in November," said Simonetta Cheli, ESA’s Director of Earth Observation Programs. “And now, with the support of ESA’s Member States, we are very eager to kick-start the preparation process for our twelfth Earth Explorer research mission. This new mission, to be launched around 2036, will help retain ESA’s leadership in innovation and will be key to the next segment of our FutureEO program.”
Since the launch of the first Earth Explorer in 2009, these missions, without exception, continue to surpass their initial science objectives and expectations.
So far, ten Earth Explorers have been selected for implementation.
There are currently four candidates for Earth Explorer 11: Cairt, Nitrosat, Wivern and Seastar. A down-selection will be made later this year. Now, the call is open to forge ahead with Earth Explorer 12. Information and details on how to respond to the call can be found on ESA’s Earth Observation Proposal System.
The deadline to submit a Letter of Intent is 28 April 2023 and the deadline to then submit a full proposal is 29 September 2023.
(Source: ESA news release. Images and Infographics provided)