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70-520: This European Space Agency (ESA) satellite for direct-pointing and lunar-occultation observation of X-ray sources beyond the Solar System was launched into a highly eccentric orbit (apogee 200,000 km, perigee 500 km) almost perpendicular to that of the Moon on 26 May 1983. The instrumentation includes two low-energy imaging telescopes (LEIT) with Wolter I X-ray optics (for the 0.04–2 keV energy range),

140-633: A 22-member intergovernmental body devoted to space exploration . With its headquarters in Paris and a staff of around 2,547 people globally as of 2023, the ESA was founded in 1975. Its 2024 annual budget was €7.8 billion. The ESA's space flight programme includes human spaceflight (mainly through participation in the International Space Station program); the launch and operation of crewless exploration missions to other planets (such as Mars ) and

210-568: A consequence its citizens became eligible to apply to the 2022 ESA Astronaut group , applications for which were scheduled to close one week later. The deadline was therefore extended by three weeks to allow Lithuanians a fair chance to apply. Slovakia's Associate membership came into effect on 13 October 2022, for an initial duration of seven years. The Association Agreement supersedes the European Cooperating State (ECS) Agreement, which entered into force upon Slovakia's subscription to

280-493: A driving factor in spaceport placement because most of the delta-v for a launch is spent on achieving the required horizontal orbital speed . The small gain from a few kilometers of extra altitude does not usually off-set the logistical costs of ground transport in mountainous terrain. Many spaceports have been placed at existing military installations, such as intercontinental ballistic missile ranges, which are not always physically ideal sites for launch. A rocket launch site

350-409: A full member of the ESA do so in 3 stages. First a Cooperation Agreement is signed between the country and ESA. In this stage, the country has very limited financial responsibilities. If a country wants to co-operate more fully with ESA, it signs a European Cooperating State (ECS) Agreement, albeit to be a candidate for said agreement, a country must be European. The ECS Agreement makes companies based in

420-585: A full member of the ESA on 1 January 2025, when the current Association Agreement expires. Latvia became the second current associated member on 30 June 2020, when the Association Agreement was signed by ESA Director Jan Wörner and the Minister of Education and Science of Latvia , Ilga Šuplinska in Riga . The Saeima ratified it on 27 July. In May 2021, Lithuania became the third current associated member. As

490-431: A higher quality of life, better security, more economic wealth, and also fulfill our citizens' dreams and thirst for knowledge, and attract the young generation. This is the reason space exploration is an integral part of overall space activities. It has always been so, and it will be even more important in the future. The ESA describes its work in two overlapping ways: These are either mandatory or optional. According to

560-556: A launch system, ELDO (European Launcher Development Organisation), and the other the precursor of the European Space Agency, ESRO (European Space Research Organisation). The latter was established on 20 March 1964 by an agreement signed on 14 June 1962. From 1968 to 1972, ESRO launched seven research satellites, but ELDO was not able to deliver a launch vehicle. Both agencies struggled with the underfunding and diverging interests of their participants. The ESA in its current form

630-452: A medium-energy experiment using Ar/CO 2 and Xe/CO 2 detectors (for 1.5–50 keV), a Xe/He gas scintillation spectrometer (GSPC) (covering 2–80 keV), and a reprogrammable onboard data-processing computer. Exosat was capable of observing an object (in the direct-pointing mode) for up to 80 hours and of locating sources to within at least 10 arcsec with the LEIT and about 2 arcsec with GSPC. During

700-425: A milestone in the search for exoplanets . On 21 January 2019, ArianeGroup and Arianespace announced a one-year contract with the ESA to study and prepare for a mission to mine the Moon for lunar regolith . In 2021 the ESA ministerial council agreed to the " Matosinhos manifesto" which set three priority areas (referred to as accelerators ) "space for a green future, a rapid and resilient crisis response, and

770-484: A provision ensuring a fair industrial return to Canada. The most recent Cooperation Agreement was signed on 15 December 2010 with a term extending to 2020. For 2014, Canada's annual assessed contribution to the ESA general budget was €6,059,449 ( CAD$ 8,559,050). For 2017, Canada has increased its annual contribution to €21,600,000 ( CAD$ 30,000,000). The ESA is funded from annual contributions by national governments of members as well as from an annual contribution by

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840-467: A table of spaceports and launch complexes for vertical launchers with documented achieved launches of humans to space (more than 100 km (62 mi) altitude). The sorting order is spaceport by spaceport according to the time of the first human launch. † Three of the Soyuz missions were uncrewed and are not counted ( Soyuz 2 , Soyuz 20 , Soyuz 34 ). ‡ STS-51-L ( Challenger ) failed to reach orbit and

910-467: A view to their being used for scientific purposes and for operational space applications systems… The ESA is responsible for setting a unified space and related industrial policy, recommending space objectives to the member states, and integrating national programs like satellite development, into the European program as much as possible. Jean-Jacques Dordain – ESA's Director General (2003–2015) – outlined

980-711: A while already and which gives effect to these. Thanks Jan for your hand of friendship and making this possible." The ESA currently has two operational launch vehicles Vega-C and Ariane 6 . Rocket launches are carried out by Arianespace , which has 23 shareholders representing the industry that manufactures the Ariane 5 as well as CNES , at the ESA's Guiana Space Centre . Because many communication satellites have equatorial orbits, launches from French Guiana are able to take larger payloads into space than from spaceports at higher latitudes . In addition, equatorial launches give spacecraft an extra 'push' of nearly 500 m/s due to

1050-566: Is a site for launching or receiving spacecraft , by analogy to a seaport for ships or an airport for aircraft. The word spaceport , and even more so cosmodrome , has traditionally been used for sites capable of launching spacecraft into orbit around Earth or on interplanetary trajectories. However, rocket launch sites for purely sub-orbital flights are sometimes called spaceports, as in recent years new and proposed sites for suborbital human flights have been frequently referred to or named "spaceports". Space stations and proposed future bases on

1120-477: Is a widespread harassment between management and its employees, especially with its contractors. Since the ESA is an international organization, unaffiliated with any single nation, any form of legal action is difficult to raise against the organization. Member states participate to varying degrees with both mandatory space programs and those that are optional. As of 2008 , the mandatory programmes made up 25% of total expenditures while optional space programmes were

1190-588: Is already underway in two different areas of launcher activity that will bring benefits to both partners. Notable ESA programmes include SMART-1 , a probe testing cutting-edge space propulsion technology, the Mars Express and Venus Express missions, as well as the development of the Ariane 5 rocket and its role in the ISS partnership. The ESA maintains its scientific and research projects mainly for astronomy-space missions such as Corot , launched on 27 December 2006,

1260-517: Is at an advanced stage" with these nations and that "prospects for mutual benefits are existing". A separate space exploration strategy resolution calls for further co-operation with the United States, Russia and China on " LEO exploration, including a continuation of ISS cooperation and the development of a robust plan for the coordinated use of space transportation vehicles and systems for exploration purposes, participation in robotic missions for

1330-566: Is built as far as possible away from major population centers in order to mitigate risk to bystanders should a rocket experience a catastrophic failure. In many cases a launch site is built close to major bodies of water to ensure that no components are shed over populated areas. Typically a spaceport site is large enough that, should a vehicle explode, it will not endanger human lives or adjacent launch pads. Planned sites of spaceports for sub-orbital tourist spaceflight often make use of existing ground infrastructure, including runways. The nature of

1400-567: Is capable of carrying a payload with a mass of between 300 and 1500 kg to an altitude of 700 km, for low polar orbit . Its maiden launch from Kourou was on 13 February 2012. Vega began full commercial exploitation in December 2015. The rocket has three solid propulsion stages and a liquid propulsion upper stage (the AVUM ) for accurate orbital insertion and the ability to place multiple payloads into different orbits. A larger version of

1470-607: Is designed to better understand dark energy and dark matter by accurately measuring the accelerating expansion of the universe . The agency's facilities date back to ESRO and are deliberately distributed among various countries and areas. The most important are the following centres: The treaty establishing the European Space Agency reads: The purpose of the Agency shall be to provide for and to promote, for exclusively peaceful purposes, cooperation among European States in space research and technology and their space applications, with

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1540-452: Is not counted. STS-107 ( Columbia ) reached orbit and is therefore included in the count (disaster struck on re-entry). Crewed Missions failed to reach Kármán line: Soyuz T-10a (1983) STS-51-L (1986) Soyuz MS-10 (2018) The following is a table of spaceports with a documented achieved launch to orbit. The table is sorted according to the time of the first launch that achieved satellite orbit insertion. The first column gives

1610-540: Is the major European spaceport, with satellite launches that benefit from the location 5 degrees north of the equator. In October 2003 the Jiuquan Satellite Launch Center achieved the first Chinese human spaceflight. Breaking with tradition, in June 2004 on a runway at Mojave Air and Space Port , California, a human was for the first time launched to space in a privately funded, suborbital spaceflight, that

1680-448: The Earth 's radiation belts, the scientific instruments were operated above ~50,000 km, giving up to ~76 hr per 90 hr orbit. There was no need for any onboard data storage as Exosat was visible from the ground station at Villafranca, Spain for practically the entire time the scientific instruments were operated. European Space Agency The European Space Agency ( ESA ) is

1750-403: The Earth's rotational speed (465 m/s at the equator). Such launches also provide a desirable orientation for arriving at a geostationary orbit . For polar orbits and Molniya orbits this does not apply. In principle, advantages of high altitude launch are reduced vertical distance to travel and a thinner atmosphere for the rocket to penetrate. However, altitude of the launch site is not

1820-455: The European Union (EU). The budget of the ESA was €5.250 billion in 2016. Every 3–4 years, ESA member states agree on a budget plan for several years at an ESA member states conference. This plan can be amended in future years, however provides the major guideline for the ESA for several years. The 2016 budget allocations for major areas of the ESA activity are shown in the chart on

1890-709: The Moon , Mars , orbiting the Earth, at Sun-Earth and Earth-Moon Lagrange points , and at other locations in the Solar System . Human-tended outposts on the Moon or Mars, for example, will be spaceports by definition. The 2012 Space Studies Program of the International Space University studied the economic benefit of a network of spaceports throughout the solar system beginning from Earth and expanding outwardly in phases, within its team project Operations And Service Infrastructure for Space (OASIS). Its analysis claimed that

1960-538: The Orion spacecraft service module that flies on the Space Launch System . After World War II , many European scientists left Western Europe in order to work with the United States. Although the 1950s boom made it possible for Western European countries to invest in research and specifically in space-related activities, Western European scientists realised solely national projects would not be able to compete with

2030-525: The Titan landing module Huygens . As the successor of ELDO , the ESA has also constructed rockets for scientific and commercial payloads. Ariane 1 , launched in 1979, carried mostly commercial payloads into orbit from 1984 onward. The next two versions of the Ariane rocket were intermediate stages in the development of a more advanced launch system, the Ariane 4 , which operated between 1988 and 2003 and established

2100-535: The United States military ) led to decisions to rely more on itself and on co-operation with Russia. A 2011 press issue thus stated: Russia is ESA's first partner in its efforts to ensure long-term access to space. There is a framework agreement between ESA and the government of the Russian Federation on cooperation and partnership in the exploration and use of outer space for peaceful purposes, and cooperation

2170-464: The Ariane 6 to launch in June or July 2024. The beginning of the new millennium saw the ESA become, along with agencies like NASA, JAXA , ISRO , the CSA and Roscosmos , one of the major participants in scientific space research . Although the ESA had relied on co-operation with NASA in previous decades, especially the 1990s, changed circumstances (such as tough legal restrictions on information sharing by

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2240-511: The ESA as full members. Since October 2022 there have been five associate members: Slovenia, Latvia, Lithuania, Slovakia and Canada. The four European members have shown interest in full membership and may eventually apply within the next years. Since 2016, Slovenia has been an associated member of the ESA. In November 2023 Slovenia formally applied for full membership. In June 2024 Prime Minister Robert Golob and Director General Josef Aschbacher have signed an agreement that will see Slovenia become

2310-490: The ESA as the world leader in commercial space launches in the 1990s. Although the succeeding Ariane 5 experienced a failure on its first flight, it has since firmly established itself within the heavily competitive commercial space launch market with 112 successful launches until 2021. The successor launch vehicle, the Ariane 6 , is under development and had a successful long-firing engine test in November 2023. The ESA plans for

2380-531: The ESA began Giotto , its first deep-space mission, to study the comets Halley and Grigg–Skjellerup . Hipparcos , a star-mapping mission, was launched in 1989 and in the 1990s SOHO , Ulysses and the Hubble Space Telescope were all jointly carried out with NASA. Later scientific missions in cooperation with NASA include the Cassini–Huygens space probe, to which the ESA contributed by building

2450-533: The ESA is not the only European governmental space organisation (for example European Union Satellite Centre and the European Union Space Programme Agency ). After the decision of the ESA Council of 21/22 March 2001, the procedure for accession of the European states was detailed as described the document titled "The Plan for European Co-operating States (PECS)". Nations that want to become

2520-479: The ESA website, the activities are: Every member country (known as 'Member States') must contribute to these programmes: The European Space Agency Science Programme is a long-term programme of space science missions. Depending on their individual choices the countries can contribute to the following programmes, becoming 'Participating States', listed according to: As of 2023, Many other facilities are operated by national space agencies in close collaboration with

2590-572: The ESA. The ESA employs around 2,547 people, and thousands of contractors. Initially, new employees are contracted for an expandable four-year term, which is until the organization's retirement age of 63. According to the ESA's documents, the staff can receive myriad of perks, such as financial childcare support, retirement plans, and financial help when migrating. The ESA also prevents employees from disclosing any private documents or correspondences to outside parties. Ars Technica ' s 2023 report, which contained testimonies of 18 people, suggested that there

2660-444: The European Space Agency's mission in a 2003 interview: Today space activities have pursued the benefit of citizens, and citizens are asking for a better quality of life on Earth. They want greater security and economic wealth, but they also want to pursue their dreams, to increase their knowledge, and they want younger people to be attracted to the pursuit of science and technology. I think that space can do all of this: it can produce

2730-487: The ME and LEIT were swung open to act as thermal and stray-light shields for the telescopes and star trackers, respectively. The orbit of Exosat was different from any previous X-ray astronomy satellite. To maximize the number of sources occulted by the Moon , a highly eccentric orbit (e ~ 0.93) with a 90.6 hr period and an inclination of 73° was chosen. The initial apogee was 191,000 km and perigee 350 km. To be outside

2800-406: The Moon are sometimes called spaceports, in particular if intended as a base for further journeys. The term rocket launch site is used for any facility from which rockets are launched. It may contain one or more launch pads or suitable sites to mount a transportable launch pad. It is typically surrounded by a large safety area, often called a rocket range or missile range . The range includes

2870-479: The Moon; Earth observation, science and telecommunication; designing launch vehicles ; and maintaining a major spaceport , the Guiana Space Centre at Kourou ( French Guiana ), France. The main European launch vehicle Ariane 6 will be operated through Arianespace with the ESA sharing in the costs of launching and further developing this launch vehicle. The agency is also working with NASA to manufacture

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2940-453: The OBC and Central Terminal Unit were in-flight reprogrammable. This flexibility far exceeded any other ESA spacecraft built up to then. Each of the three axes were stabilized and the optical axes of the three scientific instruments were coaligned. The entrance apertures of the scientific instruments were all located on one face of the central body. Once in orbit the flaps which cover the entrances to

3010-631: The Plan for European Cooperating States Charter on 4 February 2016, a scheme introduced at ESA in 2001. The ECS Agreement was subsequently extended until 3 August 2022. Since 1 January 1979, Canada has had the special status of a Cooperating State within the ESA. By virtue of this accord, the Canadian Space Agency takes part in the ESA's deliberative bodies and decision-making and also in the ESA's programmes and activities. Canadian firms can bid for and receive contracts to work on programmes. The accord has

3080-736: The Vega launcher, Vega-C had its first flight in July 2022. The new evolution of the rocket incorporates a larger first stage booster, the P120C replacing the P80 , an upgraded Zefiro (rocket stage) second stage, and the AVUM+ upper stage. This new variant enables larger single payloads, dual payloads, return missions, and orbital transfer capabilities. Historically, the Ariane family rockets have been funded primarily "with money contributed by ESA governments seeking to participate in

3150-548: The agency functioned in a de facto fashion. The ESA launched its first major scientific mission in 1975, Cos-B , a space probe monitoring gamma-ray emissions in the universe, which was first worked on by ESRO. The ESA collaborated with NASA on the International Ultraviolet Explorer (IUE), the world's first high-orbit telescope, which was launched in 1978 and operated successfully for 18 years. A number of successful Earth-orbit projects followed, and in 1986

3220-958: The area over which launched rockets are expected to fly, and within which some components of the rockets may land. Tracking stations are sometimes located in the range to assess the progress of the launches. Major spaceports often include more than one launch complex , which can be rocket launch sites adapted for different types of launch vehicles . (These sites can be well-separated for safety reasons.) For launch vehicles with liquid propellant, suitable storage facilities and, in some cases, production facilities are necessary. On-site processing facilities for solid propellants are also common. A spaceport may also include runways for takeoff and landing of aircraft to support spaceport operations, or to enable support of HTHL or horizontal takeoff and vertical landing (HTVL) winged launch vehicles. The first rockets to reach space were V-2 rockets launched from Peenemünde , Germany in 1944 during World War II . After

3290-513: The case for all previous ESA (ESRO) scientific programmes. For the first time in an ESA project, this led to the approach of payload funding and management by the Agency. Instrument design and development became a shared responsibility between ESA and hardware groups. In July 1981 ESA released the first Announcement of Opportunity (AO) for participation in the Exosat observation programme to the scientific community of its Member States. By 1 November 1981,

3360-463: The closing of the AO window, some 500 observing proposals had been received. Of these, 200 were selected for the first nine months of operation. Exosat was the first ESA spacecraft to carry on board a digital computer (OBC), with its main purpose being scientific data processing. Spacecraft monitoring and control were secondary. To provide the data handling subsystem with an exceptional flexibility of operation,

3430-476: The cooperation were laid out in a framework agreement signed by the two entities. On 17 November 2020, ESA signed a memorandum of understanding (MOU) with the South African National Space Agency (SANSA). SANSA CEO Dr. Valanathan Munsami tweeted: "Today saw another landmark event for SANSA with the signing of an MoU with the ESA. This builds on initiatives that we have been discussing for

3500-507: The cosmodrome was initially held secret. Guesses to its location were misdirected by a name in common with a mining town 320 km away. The position became known in 1957 outside the Soviet Union only after U-2 planes had identified the site by following railway lines in the Kazakh SSR , although Soviet authorities did not confirm the location for decades. The Baikonur Cosmodrome achieved

3570-559: The country eligible for participation in ESA procurements. The country can also participate in all ESA programmes, except for the Basic Technology Research Programme. While the financial contribution of the country concerned increases, it is still much lower than that of a full member state. The agreement is normally followed by a Plan For European Cooperating State (or PECS Charter). This is a 5-year programme of basic research and development activities aimed at improving

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3640-616: The early human flights, were carried out at Cape Canaveral Space Force Station . For the Apollo programme, an adjacent spaceport, Kennedy Space Center , was constructed, and achieved the first crewed mission to the lunar surface ( Apollo 11 ) in July 1969. It was the base for all Space Shuttle launches and most of their runway landings. For details on the launch complexes of the two spaceports, see List of Cape Canaveral and Merritt Island launch sites . The Guiana Space Centre in Kourou, French Guiana,

3710-572: The exploration of the Moon, the robotic exploration of Mars, leading to a broad Mars Sample Return mission in which Europe should be involved as a full partner, and human missions beyond LEO in the longer term." In August 2019, the ESA and the Australian Space Agency signed a joint statement of intent "to explore deeper cooperation and identify projects in a range of areas including deep space, communications, navigation, remote asset management, data analytics and mission support." Details of

3780-534: The first launch of a human into space ( Yuri Gagarin ) in 1961. The launch complex used, Site 1, has reached a special symbolic significance and is commonly called Gagarin's Start . Baikonur was the primary Soviet cosmodrome, and is still frequently used by Russia under a lease arrangement with Kazakhstan. In response to the early Soviet successes, the United States built up a major spaceport complex at Cape Canaveral in Florida. A large number of uncrewed flights, as well as

3850-561: The first phase, placing the "Node 1" spaceport with space tug services in low Earth orbit (LEO), would be commercially profitable and reduce transportation costs to geosynchronous orbit by as much as 44% (depending on the launch vehicle). The second phase would add a Node 2 spaceport on the lunar surface to provide services including lunar ice mining and delivery of rocket propellants back to Node 1. This would enable lunar surface activities and further reduce transportation costs within and out from cislunar space . The third phase would add

3920-442: The geographical location. Operations from a different country are indicated in the fourth column. A launch is counted as one also in cases where the payload consists of multiple satellites. 4 Qaem 100 The following table shows spaceports with documented achieved launches of humans to at least 100 km altitude, starting from a horizontal runway. All the flights were sub-orbital . Spaceports have been proposed for locations on

3990-439: The higher rotational velocity of the Earth at the equator compared to near the Earth's poles where rotational velocity approaches zero. Ariane 6 is a heavy lift expendable launch vehicle developed by Arianespace . The Ariane 6 entered into its inaugural flight campaign on 26 April 2024 with the flight conducted on 9 July 2024. Vega is the ESA's carrier for small satellites. Developed by seven ESA members led by Italy . It

4060-399: The local view from 100 km (62 mi) altitude is also a factor to consider. The space tourism industry (see List of private spaceflight companies ) is being targeted by spaceports in numerous locations worldwide. e.g. Spaceport America , New Mexico. The establishment of spaceports for tourist trips raises legal issues, which are only beginning to be addressed. The following is

4130-670: The nation's space industry capacity. At the end of the 5-year period, the country can either begin negotiations to become a full member state or an associated state or sign a new PECS Charter. Many countries, most of which joined the EU in both 2004 and 2007, have started to co-operate with the ESA on various levels: During the Ministerial Meeting in December 2014, ESA ministers approved a resolution calling for discussions to begin with Israel, Australia and South Africa on future association agreements. The ministers noted that "concrete cooperation

4200-873: The other 75%. The ESA has traditionally implemented a policy of "georeturn", where funds that ESA member states provide to the ESA "are returned in the form of contracts to companies in those countries." By 2015, the ESA was an intergovernmental organisation of 22 member states. The 2008 ESA budget amounted to €3.0 billion whilst the 2009 budget amounted to €3.6 billion. The total budget amounted to about €3.7 billion in 2010, €3.99 billion in 2011, €4.02 billion in 2012, €4.28 billion in 2013, €4.10 billion in 2014, €4.43 billion in 2015, €5.25 billion in 2016, €5.75 billion in 2017, €5.60 billion in 2018, €5.72 billion in 2019, €6,68 billion in 2020, €6.49 billion in 2021, €7.15 billion in 2022, €7.46 billion in 2023 and €7.79 billion in 2024. English and French are

4270-575: The period from 1967 to 1969, the European Space Research Organisation (ESRO) studied two separate missions: a European X-ray observatory satellite, as a combined X- and gamma-ray observatory (Cos-A), and a gamma-ray observatory (Cos-B). Cos-A was dropped after the initial study, and Cos-B was proceeded with. Later in 1969 a separate satellite (the Highly Eccentric Lunar Occultation Satellite - Helos)

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4340-398: The program rather than through competitive industry bids. This [has meant that] governments commit multiyear funding to the development with the expectation of a roughly 90% return on investment in the form of industrial workshare." ESA is proposing changes to this scheme by moving to competitive bids for the development of the Ariane 6 . Spaceport A spaceport or cosmodrome

4410-526: The protection of space assets", and two further high visibility projects (referred to as inspirators ) an icy moon sample return mission; and human space exploration. In the same year the recruitment process began for the 2022 European Space Agency Astronaut Group . 1 July 2023 saw the launch of the Euclid spacecraft , developed jointly with the Euclid Consortium, after 10 years of planning and building it

4480-475: The right. Countries typically have their own space programmes that differ in how they operate organisationally and financially with the ESA. For example, the French space agency CNES has a total budget of €2,015 million, of which €755 million is paid as direct financial contribution to the ESA. Several space-related projects are joint projects between national space agencies and the ESA (e.g. COROT ). Also,

4550-544: The two main superpowers. In 1958, only months after the Sputnik shock , Edoardo Amaldi (Italy) and Pierre Auger (France), two prominent members of the Western European scientific community, met to discuss the foundation of a common Western European space agency. The meeting was attended by scientific representatives from eight countries. The Western European nations decided to have two agencies: one concerned with developing

4620-665: The two official languages of the ESA. Additionally, official documents are also provided in German and documents regarding the Spacelab have been also provided in Italian. If found appropriate, the agency may conduct its correspondence in any language of a member state. The following table lists all the member states and adjunct members, their ESA convention ratification dates, and their contributions as of 2024: Previously associated members were Austria, Norway and Finland, all of which later joined

4690-521: The war, 70 complete V-2 rockets were brought to White Sands for test launches, with 47 of them reaching altitudes between 100 km and 213 km. The world's first spaceport for orbital and human launches, the Baikonur Cosmodrome in southern Kazakhstan , started as a Soviet military rocket range in 1955. It achieved the first orbital flight ( Sputnik 1 ) in October 1957. The exact location of

4760-573: Was founded with the ESA Convention in 1975, when ESRO was merged with ELDO. The ESA had ten founding member states: Belgium , Denmark , France , West Germany , Italy , the Netherlands , Spain , Sweden , Switzerland , and the United Kingdom . These signed the ESA Convention in 1975 and deposited the instruments of ratification by 1980, when the convention came into force. During this interval

4830-427: Was intended to pave the way for future commercial spaceflights. The spacecraft, SpaceShipOne , was launched by a carrier airplane taking off horizontally. At Cape Canaveral, SpaceX in 2015 made the first successful landing and recovery of a first stage used in a vertical satellite launch. Rockets can most easily reach satellite orbits if launched near the equator in an easterly direction, as this maximizes use of

4900-511: Was proposed. The Helos mission was to determine accurately the location of bright X-ray sources using the lunar occultation technique. In 1973 the observatory part of the mission was added, and mission approval from the European Space Agency Council was given for Helos, now renamed Exosat. It was decided that the observatory should be made available to a wide community, rather than be restricted to instrument developers, as had been

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