Space, unanimous resolution to the ministerial ESA: “Europe accelerate”

A greener planet, a faster response to natural crises such as fires and floods, the protection of European assets in space and the life of astronauts from the risks caused by space debris. These are the main contents of the three ‘accelerators’ identified by the intermediate ESA ministerial meeting, held today in Matosinhos, Portugal, to bring Europe’s space challenges to a more advanced level than the current one in the use of space. Unanimous the resolution adopted by ESA ministers and contained in the “Matosinhos manifesto” in which, in addition to the three ‘accelerators’, the ESA Council also recognized two “inspiring” themes to strengthen European leadership in science, technological development and inspiration: a return mission of the frozen moon champion and human exploration of space. With the resolution and the focus on the three ‘accelerators’, at the end of the meeting the ministers of the member states gave a mandate to the director general of ESA, Josef Aschbacher, to develop the governance and financing paths, in agreement with the states members of the European Space Agency. During an online press conference, ESA DG Josef Aschbacher and Manuel Heitor, Minister for Science, Technology and Higher Education of the Portuguese government, who chaired the ESA intermediate ministerial meeting, explained the details. of the intermediate ministerial. The Resolution to Accelerate the Use of Space in Europe strongly supports the ESA Director-General’s 2025 Agenda vision of building on Europe’s excellence in space and realizing its full potential, for the benefit of all on Earth and of European citizens, in particular. “Space is the place where the increasingly intense global competition for technological innovation, economic leadership and European autonomy will take place. It is urgent for Europe to accelerate the use of space,” noted Aschbacher at the end of the meeting in Matosinhos. “The mid-term ministerial meeting recognized the need for a renewed European space ambition. The three accelerators and the two inspirers – Aschbacher said – will be strategic steps for Europe to make full use of space for its citizens, creating economic opportunities. This gives me as Director General of ESA a clear mandate in view of the European Space Summit “. Portuguese Minister Manuel Heitor also said he was convinced that” we must all ‘make room for Europe’ in order to ensure that European citizens become an integral part of the future space developments in Europe. This means saving lives, predicting natural disasters, preventing fires and, in general, addressing climate change, the drastic reduction of biodiversity, the health and economic crisis, uncertainty and risks, as well as ensuring safety and the conditions of security for our populations “. “This – observed Minister Heitor – can only be addressed if space initiatives in Europe go ahead in line with digital and green transitions”. “The large-scale nature and fast pace of the climate crisis and other challenges mean that no European nation will be able to tackle them effectively alone. Space has enormous untapped potential to help address these challenges and is now urgently needed. an acceleration in the development of European space capabilities “. The Intermediate Ministerial Meeting has been defined” a milestone “in the European roadmap which has as its next appointment the European Space Summit to be held in Toulouse in February 2022 and in view of the next Meeting of the ESA Council at ministerial level. As a first priority, ESA will start working on the accelerator theme named in the Portuguese ministerial “Space for a Green Future”, that is the European Space Agency will work to allow people to better understand the current state of health of the planet and develop scenarios and solutions for sustainable life on Earth through a digital twin of our planet that will contribute to achieving climate neutrality with zero net greenhouse gas emissions by 2050. With the second accelerator “Rapid and Resilient Crisis Response”, the ESA it will then aim to support governments to act decisively on the crises Europe faces, from floods and storms to fires, without prejudice to the sovereign competences of the Member States and the competences of the European Union. Third, the “Protection of Space Assets” accelerator will aim to safeguard ESA astronauts and resources from the interference of space debris and space weather conditions. The concept of the three accelerators and the two inspirers has been defined in recent months, based on the advice of a high-level advisory group to the ESA Director General. The “Final report on accelerating the use of space in Europe” was published in early October and its recommendations were presented by the ESA Director General to member states at the ESA Council meeting held later this month. .