European Space Agency

“ESA” redirects here. For other uses, see ESA (disam-biguation).The European Space Agency (ESA; French: Agence

ESA Mission Control at ESOC in Darmstadt, Germany

spatiale européenne, ASE) is an intergovernmental or-ganisation dedicated to the exploration of space, with 22member states. Established in 1975 and headquarteredin Paris, France, ESA has a staff of more than 2,000 withan annual budget of about €4.28 billion / US$5.51 billion(2013).[3]

ESA’s space flight programme includes humanspaceflight, mainly through the participation in theInternational Space Station programme, the launchand operations of unmanned exploration missions toother planets and the Moon, Earth observation, science,telecommunication as well as maintaining a majorspaceport, the Guiana Space Centre at Kourou, FrenchGuiana, and designing launch vehicles. The mainEuropean launch vehicle Ariane 5 is operated throughArianespace with ESA sharing in the costs of launchingand further developing this launch vehicle.ESA science missions are based at ESTEC in Noordwijk,Netherlands, Earth Observation missions at ESRIN inFrascati, Italy, ESA Mission Control (ESOC) is inDarmstadt, Germany, the European Astronaut Centre(EAC) that trains astronauts for future missions is situ-ated in Cologne, Germany, and the European Space As-tronomy Centre is located in Villanueva de la Cañada,Madrid, Spain.

1 History

1.1 Foundation

Main article: ESROAfter World War II, many European scientists left

ESTEC buildings in Noordwijk, Netherlands. ESTEC was themain technical centre of ESRO and remains so for the succes-sor organization, ESA.

Western Europe in order to work in the United States. Al-though the 1950s boom made it possible for Western Eu-ropean countries to invest in research and specifically inspace-related activities, Western European scientists real-ized solely national projects would not be able to competewith the two main superpowers. In 1958, only months af-ter the Sputnik shock, Edoardo Amaldi and Pierre Auger,two prominent members of the Western European scien-tific community at that time, met to discuss the founda-tion of a common Western European space agency. Themeeting was attended by scientific representatives fromeight countries, including Harrie Massey (UK).The Western European nations decided to have two dif-ferent agencies, one concerned with developing a launchsystem, ELDO (European Launch Development Organi-zation), and the precursor of the European Space Agency,ESRO (European Space Research Organisation). Thelatter was established on 20 March 1964 by an agree-ment signed on 14 June 1962. From 1968 to 1972, ESROlaunched seven research satellites.ESA in its current form was founded with the ESA Con-vention in 1975, when ESRO was merged with ELDO.ESA has 10 foundingmember states: Belgium, Denmark,France, Germany, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, Sweden,Switzerland and the United Kingdom.[4] These signed theESA Convention in 1975 and deposited the instrumentsof ratification by 1980, when the convention came into

1

2 2 MISSION

force. During this interval the agency functioned in ade facto fashion.[2] ESA launched its first major scien-tific mission in 1975, Cos-B, a space probe monitoringgamma-ray emissions in the universe first worked on byESRO.

1.2 Later activities

Mock-up of the Ariane 1

ESA joined NASA in the IUE, the world’s first high-orbittelescope, which was launched in 1978 and operated verysuccessfully for 18 years. A number of successful Earth-orbit projects followed, and in 1986 ESA beganGiotto, itsfirst deep-space mission, to study the comets Halley andGrigg–Skjellerup. Hipparcos, a star-mapping mission,was launched in 1989 and in the 1990s SOHO, Ulyssesand the Hubble Space Telescope were all jointly carriedout with NASA. Recent scientific missions in cooperationwith NASA include the Cassini–Huygens space probe,to which ESA contributed by building the Titan landingmodule Huygens.As the successor of ELDO, ESA has also constructedrockets for scientific and commercial payloads. Ariane1, launched in 1979, brought mostly commercial pay-loads into orbit from 1984 onward. The next two devel-opments of the Ariane rocket were intermediate stages inthe development of a more advanced launch system, theAriane 4, which operated between 1988 and 2003 and

established ESA as the world leader in commercial spacelaunches in the 1990s. Although the succeeding Ariane 5experienced a failure on its first flight, it has since firmlyestablished itself within the heavily competitive commer-cial space launchmarket with 56 successful launches as ofSeptember 2011. The successor launch vehicle of Ariane5, the Ariane 6 is already in the definition stage and is en-visioned to enter service in the 2020s.The beginning of the new millennium saw ESA become,along with agencies like NASA, JAXA, ISRO, CSA andRoscosmos, one of the major participants in scientificspace research. Although ESA had relied on cooperationwith NASA in previous decades, especially the 1990s,changed circumstances (such as tough legal restrictionson information sharing by the United States military) ledto decisions to rely more on itself and on cooperation withRussia. A 2011 press issue thus stated:[5]

Russia is ESA’s first partner in its effortsto ensure long-term access to space. Thereis a framework agreement between ESA andthe government of the Russian Federation oncooperation and partnership in the explorationand use of outer space for peaceful purposes,and cooperation is already under way in twodifferent areas of launcher activity that willbring benefits to both partners.

Most notable for its new self-confidence are ESA’s ownrecent successful missions SMART-1, a probe testingcutting-edge new space propulsion technology, the MarsExpress and Venus Express missions as well as the de-velopment of the Ariane 5 rocket and its role in the ISSpartnership. ESA maintains its scientific and researchprojects mainly for astronomy-space missions such asCorot, launched on 27 December 2006, a milestone inthe search for extrasolar planets.

2 Mission

The treaty establishing the European Space Agencyreads:[6]

ESA’s purpose shall be to provide for, andto promote, for exclusively peaceful purposes,cooperation among European States in spaceresearch and technology and their space appli-cations, with a view to their being used for sci-entific purposes and for operational space ap-plications systems

ESA is responsible for setting a unified space and re-lated industrial policy, recommending space objectivesto the member states, and integrating national programslike satellite development, into the European program asmuch as possible.[6]

3.2 Associate members 3

Jean-Jacques Dordain ESA’s Director General (since2003) outlined the European Space Agency’s mission ina 2003 interview:[7]

Today space activities are pursued for thebenefit of citizens, and citizens are asking fora better quality of life on earth. They wantgreater security and economic wealth, but theyalso want to pursue their dreams, to increasetheir knowledge, and they want younger peo-ple to be attracted to the pursuit of science andtechnology.

I think that space can do all of this: it canproduce a higher quality of life, better security,more economic wealth, and also fulfill our cit-izens’ dreams and thirst for knowledge, and at-tract the young generation. This is the reasonspace exploration is an integral part of overallspace activities. It has always been so, and itwill be even more important in the future.

3 Member states, funding and bud-get

3.1 Membership and contribution to ESA

Member statesECS statesSignatories of the Cooperation Agreement

ESA is an intergovernmental organisation of 22 mem-ber states.[8]Member states participate to varying degreesin the mandatory (25% of total expenditures in 2008)and optional space programmes (75% of total expendi-tures in 2008).[9] The 2008 budget amounted to €3.0 bil-lion the 2009 budget to €3.6 billion.[10] The total budgetamounted to about €3.7 billion in 2010, €3.99 billion in2011, €4.02 billion in 2012, €4.28 billion in 2013 and€4.10 billion in 2014.[3][11][12][13] Languages used areEnglish, French, German, Italian, Dutch and Spanish.[2]

ESA member statesESA associate membersECS statesSignatories of the Cooperation Agreement

The following table lists all the member states and ad-junct members, their ESA convention ratification dates,and their contributions in 2015:[1]

[1] These nations are considered initial signatories, but sincethey were members of neither ESRO nor ELDO (the pre-cursor organizations to ESA) the Convention could onlyenter into force when the last of the other 10 founders rat-ified it.

[2] Founding members and initial signatories drafted the ESAcharter which entered into force on 30 October 1980.These nations were also members of either ELDO orESRO.[21]

[3] Accededmembers became ESAmember states upon sign-ing an accession agreement.[14][15][16][17][18][19][20]

[4] Canada is an associated member of ESA.[22][23]

[5] Framework Agreement establishing the legal basis for co-operation between ESA and the European Union cameinto force in May 2004.

3.2 Associate members

Currently the only associated member of ESA isCanada.[23] Previously associated members were Austria,Norway and Finland, all of which later joined ESA as fullmembers.

3.2.1 Canada

Since 1 January 1979, Canada has had the special sta-tus of a Cooperating State within the ESA. By virtue ofthis accord, the Canadian Space Agency takes part in theESA’s deliberative bodies and decision-making and alsoin the ESA’s programmes and activities. Canadian firmscan bid for and receive contracts to work on programmes.The accord has a provision ensuring a fair industrial re-turn to Canada.[25] The most recent Cooperation Agree-ment was signed on 2010-12-15 with a term extending to

4 3 MEMBER STATES, FUNDING AND BUDGET

2020.[26][27] For 2014, Canada’s annual assessed contri-bution to the ESA general budget was 6,059,449.00 Eu-ros (CAD$8,559,050).[28]

3.3 Budget appropriation and allocation

ESA budget chart by programme for 2011 (in €m.)[11]

Earth Observation: 843.9 (21.1%)Navigation: 665.7 (16.7%)Launchers: 612.5 (15.3%)Science: 464.8 (11.6%)Human Spaceflight: 410.9 (10.3%)Telecommunications: 341.3 (8.5%)Basic Activities: 216.7 (5.4%)General Budget: 179.9 (4.5%)Robotic Exploration: 129.4 (3.2%)Technology: 105.1 (2.5%)Space Situational Awareness: 15.7 (0.4%)ECSA: 7.5 (0.2%)Other (0.3%)

The ESA is funded from annual contributions by nationalgovernments as well as from an annual contribution bythe European Union (EU).[29]

The 2005 budget of ESA was €2.977 billion in 2005, ris-ing to €2.904 billion in 2006, €3.018 billion in 2008,[30]€3.600 billion in 2009,[31] €3.745 billion in 2010,[32]€3.994 billion in 2011[33] and €4.020 billion in 2012.[12]Every 3–4 years, ESA member states agree on a budgetplan for several years at an ESA member states confer-ence. This plan can be amended in future years, howeverprovides the major guideline for ESA for several years.The last major conference was held at the end of 2008,setting the budget for the years to 2012.The 2011 budget allocations for major areas of ESA ac-tivity are shown on the pie-chart on the right. The sectioncalled 'Other' includes Technology Development, SpaceSituational Awareness and spending related to EuropeanCooperating States.[31]

Countries typically have their own space programmes thatdiffer in how they operate organisationally and financially

with ESA. For example, the French space agency CNEShas a total budget of €2015 million, of which €755 mil-lion is paid as direct financial contribution to ESA.[34]Several space-related projects are joint projects betweennational space agencies and ESA (e.g. COROT). Also,ESA is not the only European governmental space organ-isation (for example European Union Satellite Centre).

3.4 Enlargement

See also: Enlargement of the European Space Agency

After the decision of the ESA Council of 21/22 March2001, the procedure for accession of the European stateswas detailed as described the document titled “The Planfor European Co-operating States (PECS)".[35] Nationsthat want to become a full member of ESA do so in 3stages. First a Cooperation Agreement is signed betweenthe country and ESA. In this stage, the country has verylimited financial responsibilities. If a country wants tocooperate more fully with ESA, it signs a European Co-operating State (ECS) Agreement. The ECS Agreementmakes companies based in the country eligible for par-ticipation in ESA procurements. The country can alsoparticipate in all ESA programmes, except for the Ba-sic Technology Research Programme. While the finan-cial contribution of the country concerned increases, it isstill much lower than that of a full member state. Theagreement is normally followed by a Plan For EuropeanCooperating State (or PECS Charter). This is a 5-yearprogramme of basic research and development activitiesaimed at improving the nation’s space industry capacity.At the end of the 5-year period, the country can eitherbegin negotiations to become a full member state or anassociated state or sign a new PECS Charter.[36] Manycountries, most of which joined the EU in both 2004 and2007, have started to cooperate with ESA on various lev-els:

3.5 EU and the European Space Agency

The political perspective of the European Union (EU)was to make ESA an agency of the EU by 2014,[56] al-though this date was not met. The EU is already thelargest single donor to ESA’s budget and non-ESA EUstates are observers at ESA.The only current EU member state that has not signed anESA Cooperation Agreement is Croatia. In December2014, the ESA Ministerial Council authorized officialsto begin discussions to establish formal cooperation withCroatia.[57]

4.2 Soyuz 5

4 Launch vehicle fleet

ESA has a fleet of different launch vehicles in servicewith which it competes in all sectors of the launch mar-ket. ESA’s fleet consists of three major rocket designs:Ariane 5, Soyuz-2 and Vega. Rocket launches are carriedout by Arianespace, which has 23 shareholders represent-ing the industry that manufactures the Ariane 5 as well asCNES, at the ESA’s Guiana Space Centre. Because manycommunication satellites have equatorial orbits, launchesfrom French Guiana are able to take larger payloads intospace than from spaceports at higher latitudes. In addi-tion, equatorial launches give spacecraft an extra 'push' ofnearly 500 m/s due to the higher rotational velocity of theEarth at the equator compared to near the Earth’s poleswhere rotational velocity approaches zero.

4.1 Ariane 5

Main article: Ariane 5The Ariane 5 rocket is ESA’s primary launcher. It

Ariane 5 ECA transported to the ELA-3 launch pad

has been in service since 1997 and replaced Ariane 4.Two different variants are currently in use. The heav-iest and most used version, the Ariane 5 ECA, deliv-ers two communications satellites of up to 10 tonnesinto GTO. It failed during its first test flight in 2002,but has since made 43 consecutive successful flights (asof April 2014). The other version, Ariane 5 ES, wasused to launch the Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) tothe International Space Station (ISS) and will be used tolaunch four Galileo navigational satellites at a time.[58][59]

In November 2012, ESA agreed to build an upgradedvariant called Ariane 5 ME (Mid-life Evolution) whichwill increase payload capacity to 11.5 tonnes to GTO andfeature a restartable second stage to allow more complexmissions. Ariane 5 ME is scheduled to fly in 2018.[60]Some of its new features will also be adopted by the next-generation launcher, Ariane 6, planned to replace Ariane5 in the 2020s.

ESA’s Ariane 1, 2, 3 and 4 launchers (the last of whichwas ESA’s long-time workhorse) have been retired.

4.2 Soyuz

Main article: Soyuz at the Guiana Space CentreSoyuz-2 (also called the Soyuz-ST or Soyuz-STK) is a

Soyuz Launch Complex

Russian medium payload launcher (ca. 3 metric tons toGTO) which was brought into ESA service in October2011.[61][62] ESA entered into a €340 million joint ven-ture with the Russian Federal Space Agency over the useof the Soyuz launcher.[5] Under the agreement, the Rus-sian agency manufactures Soyuz rocket parts for ESA,which are then shipped to French Guiana for assembly.ESA benefits because it gains a medium payloadlauncher, complementing its fleet while saving on de-velopment costs. In addition, the Soyuz rocket—whichhas been the Russian’s space launch workhorse for some40 years—is proven technology with a very good safetyrecord. Russia benefits in that it gets access to the Kouroulaunch site. Due to its proximity to the equator, launchingfromKourou rather than Baikonur nearly doubles Soyuz’spayload to GTO (3.0 tonnes vs. 1.7 tonnes).Soyuz first launched from Kourou on 21 October 2011,and successfully placed two Galileo satellites into orbit23,222 kilometres above Earth.[61]

4.3 Vega

Main article: Vega (rocket)Vega is ESA’s carrier for small satellites. Developed byseven ESAmembers lead by Italy, it is capable of carryinga payload with a mass of between 300 and 1500 kg to analtitude of 700 km, for low polar orbit. Its maiden launchfrom Kourou was on 13 February 2012.[63]

The rocket has three solid propulsion stages and a liquidpropulsion upper stage (the AVUM) for accurate orbitalinsertion and the ability to place multiple payloads intodifferent orbits.[64][65]

6 5 HUMAN SPACE FLIGHT

Vega VV02 rocket on the ELV pad

4.4 Ariane launch vehicle developmentfunding

Historically, the Ariane family rockets have been fundedprimarily “with money contributed by ESA governmentsseeking to participate in the program rather than throughcompetitive industry bids. This [has meant that] govern-ments commit multiyear funding to the development withthe expectation of a roughly 90% return on investmentin the form of industrial workshare.” ESA is proposingchanges to this scheme by moving to competitive bids forthe development of the Ariane 6.[66]

5 Human space flight

5.1 History

At the time ESA was formed, its main goals did not en-compass human space flight; rather it considered itselfto be primarily a scientific research organisation for un-manned space exploration in contrast to its American andSoviet counterparts. It is therefore not surprising that thefirst non-Soviet European in space was not an ESA as-tronaut on a European space craft; it was CzechoslovakVladimír Remekwho in 1978 became the first non-SovietEuropean in space (the first European in space being Yuri

Ulf Merbold became the first ESA astronaut to fly into space.

Gagarin of the Soviet Union)— on a Soviet Soyuz space-craft, followed by the Pole Mirosław Hermaszewski andEast German Sigmund Jähn in the same year. This Sovietco-operation programme, known as Intercosmos, primar-ily involved the participation of Eastern bloc countries.In 1982, however, Jean-Loup Chrétien became the firstnon-Communist Bloc astronaut on a flight to the SovietSalyut 7 space station.Because Chrétien did not officially fly into space as anESA astronaut, but rather as a member of the FrenchCNES astronaut corps, the German Ulf Merbold is con-sidered the first ESA astronaut to fly into space. He par-ticipated in the STS-9 Space Shuttlemission that includedthe first use of the European-built Spacelab in 1983. STS-9 marked the beginning of an extensive ESA/NASA jointpartnership that included dozens of space flights of ESAastronauts in the following years. Some of these missionswith Spacelab were fully funded and organizationally andscientifically controlled by ESA (such as two missions byGermany and one by Japan) with European astronauts asfull crew members rather than guests on board. Besidepaying for Spacelab flights and seats on the shuttles, ESAcontinued its human space flight co-operation with theSoviet Union and later Russia, including numerous vis-its to Mir.During the latter half of the 1980s, European humanspace flights changed from being the exception to rou-tine and therefore, in 1990, the European Astronaut Cen-tre in Cologne, Germany was established. It selects andtrains prospective astronauts and is responsible for the co-ordination with international partners, especially with re-

7

gard to the International Space Station. As of 2006, theESA astronaut corps officially included twelve members,including nationals from most large European countriesexcept the United Kingdom.In the summer of 2008, the ESA started to recruit newastronauts so that final selection would be due in spring2009. Almost 10,000 people registered as astronaut can-didates before registration ended in June 2008. 8,413 ful-filled the initial application criteria. Of the applicants,918 were chosen to take part in the first stage of psycho-logical testing, which narrowed down the field to 192. Af-ter two-stage psychological tests and medical evaluationin early 2009, as well as formal interviews, six new mem-bers of the European Astronaut Corps were selected - fivemen and one woman.[67]

5.2 Astronaut Corps

See also: European Astronaut Corps

The astronauts of the European Space Agency are:

[1] have visited Mir

[2] 2009 selection

[3] have visited the International Space Station

[4] now retired

5.3 Crew vehicles

In the 1980s, France pressed for an independent Euro-pean crew launch vehicle. Around 1978 it was decidedto pursue a reusable spacecraft model and starting inNovember 1987 a project to create a mini-shuttle by thename of Hermes was introduced. The craft was compa-rable to early proposals for the Space Shuttle and con-sisted of a small reusable spaceship that would carry 3 to5 astronauts and 3 to 4 metric tons of payload for scien-tific experiments. With a total maximum weight of 21metric tons it would have been launched on the Ariane 5rocket, which was being developed at that time. It wasplanned solely for use in Low-Earth orbit space flights.The planning and pre-development phase concluded in1991; however, the production phase was never fully im-plemented because at that time the political landscape hadchanged significantly. With the fall of the Soviet UnionESA looked forward to cooperation with Russia to builda next-generation space vehicle. Thus the Hermes pro-gramme was cancelled in 1995 after about 3 billion dol-lars had been spent. The Columbus space station pro-gramme had a similar fate.In the 21st century, ESA started new programmes in or-der to create its own crew vehicles, most notable amongits various projects and proposals is Hopper, whose pro-totype by EADS, called Phoenix, has already been tested.

While projects such as Hopper are neither concrete nor tobe realised within the next decade, other possibilities forhuman spaceflight in cooperation with the Russian SpaceAgency have emerged. Following talks with the RussianSpace Agency in 2004 and June 2005,[68] a cooperationbetween ESA and the Russian Space Agency was an-nounced to jointly work on the Russian-designed Kliper,a reusable spacecraft that would be available for spacetravel beyond LEO (e.g. the moon or even Mars). It wasspeculated that Europe would finance part of it. However,a €50 million participation study for Kliper, which wasexpected to be approved in December 2005, was finallynot approved by the ESA member states. The Russianstate tender for the Kliper project was subsequently can-celled in the summer of 2006.In June 2006, ESA member states granted 15 million tothe Crew Space Transportation System (CSTS) study, atwo-year study to design a spacecraft capable of goingbeyond Low-Earth orbit based on the current Soyuz de-sign. This project is pursued with Roskosmos instead ofthe previously cancelled Kliper proposal. A decision onthe actual implementation and construction of the CSTSspacecraft is contemplated for 2008, with the major de-sign decisions being made before the summer of 2007.In mid-2009 EADS Astrium was awarded a €21 millionstudy into designing a crew vehicle based on the Euro-pean ATV which is believed to now be the basis of theAdvanced Crew Transportation System design.[69]

In November 2012, ESA decided to join NASA’s Orionprogramme. The ATV would form the basis of a propul-sion unit for NASA’s new manned spacecraft. ESA mayalso seek to work with NASA on Orion’s launch systemas well in order to secure a seat on the spacecraft for itsown astronauts.[70]

In September 2014, ESA signed an agreement with SierraNevada Corporation for cooperation in Dream Chaserproject. Further studies on the Dream Chaser for Euro-pean Utilization or DC4EU project were funded, includ-ing the feasibility of launching a Europeanized DreamChaser onboard Ariane 5.[71][72]

6 Cooperation with other countriesand organisations

ESA has signed cooperation agreements with the follow-ing states that currently neither plan to integrate as tightlywith ESA institutions as Canada, nor envision futuremembership of ESA: Argentina,[73] Brazil,[74] China,[75]India[76] (for the Chandrayan mission), Russia[77] andTurkey.[78]

Additionally, ESA has joint projects with the EuropeanUnion, NASA of the United States and is participating inthe International Space Station together with the UnitedStates (NASA), Russia and Japan (JAXA).

8 6 COOPERATION WITH OTHER COUNTRIES AND ORGANISATIONS

6.1 European Union

ESA and EU member statesESA-only membersEU-only members

ESA is not an agency or body of the European Union(EU), and has non-EU countries Switzerland and Nor-way as members. There are however ties between thetwo, with various agreements in place and being workedon, to define the legal status of ESA with regard to theEU.[30]

There are common goals between the ESA and the EU.The ESA has an EU liaison office in Brussels. On cer-tain projects, the EU and ESA cooperate, such as the up-coming Galileo satellite navigation system. Space policyhas since December 2009 been an area for voting in theEuropean Council. Under the European Space Policy of2007, the EU, ESA and its Member States committedthemselves to increasing coordination of their activitiesand programmes and to organising their respective rolesrelating to space.[79]

The Lisbon Treaty of 2009 reinforces the case for spacein Europe and strengthens the role of ESA as an R&Dspace agency. Article 189 of the Treaty gives the EU amandate to elaborate a European space policy and takerelated measures, and provides that the EU should estab-lish appropriate relations with ESA.Former Italian astronaut Umberto Guidoni, during histenure as a Member of the European Parliament from2004 to 2009, stressed the importance of the EuropeanUnion as a driving force for space exploration, “sinceother players are coming up such as India and China it isbecoming ever more important that Europeans can havean independent access to space. We have to invest moreinto space research and technology in order to have anindustry capable of competing with other internationalplayers.”[80]

The first EU-ESA International Conference on HumanSpace Exploration took place in Prague on 22 and 23 Oc-

tober 2009.[81] A road map which would lead to a com-mon vision and strategic planning in the area of spaceexploration was discussed. Ministers from all 29 EU andESA members as well as members of parliament were inattendance.[82]

6.2 National space organisations of mem-ber states

• TheCentre National d'Études Spatiales (CNES) (Na-tional Centre for Space Study) is the French gov-ernment space agency (administratively, a “publicestablishment of industrial and commercial charac-ter”). Its headquarters are in central Paris. CNES isthe main participant on the Ariane project. IndeedCNES designed and tested all Ariane family rockets(mainly from its centre in Évry near Paris)

• The UK Space Agency is a partnership of the UKgovernment departments which are active in space.Through the UK Space Agency, the partners pro-vide delegates to represent the UK on the variousESA governing bodies. Each partner funds its ownprogramme.

• The Italian Space Agency (Agenzia Spaziale Italianaor ASI) was founded in 1988 to promote, coordinateand conduct space activities in Italy. Operating un-der the Ministry of the Universities and of Scientificand Technological Research, the agency cooperateswith numerous entities active in space technologyand with the president of the Council of Ministers.Internationally, the ASI provides Italy’s delegationto the Council of the European Space Agency andto its subordinate bodies.

• The German Aerospace Center (DLR) (German:Deutsches Zentrum für Luft- und Raumfahrt e. V.)is the national research centre for aviation and spaceflight of the Federal Republic of Germany and ofother member states in the Helmholtz Association.Its extensive research and development projects areincluded in national and international cooperativeprogrammes. In addition to its research projects, thecentre is the assigned space agency of Germany be-stowing headquarters of German space flight activi-ties and its associates.

• The Instituto Nacional de Técnica Aeroespacial(INTA) (National Institute for Aerospace Tech-nique) is a Public Research Organization specializedin aerospace research and technology developmentin Spain. Between other functions, it serves as a plat-form for space research and acts as a significant test-ing facility for the aeronautic and space sector in thecountry.

9

6.3 NASA

ESA has a long history of collaboration with NASA.Since ESA’s astronaut corps was formed, the SpaceShuttle has been the primary launch vehicle used byESA’s astronauts to get into space through partnershipprogrammes with NASA. In the 1980s and 1990s, theSpacelab programme was an ESA-NASA joint researchprogramme that had ESA develop and manufacture or-bital labs for the Space Shuttle for several flights on whichESA participate with astronauts in experiments.In robotic science mission and exploration missions,NASA has been ESA’s main partner. Cassini–Huygenswas a joint NASA-ESA mission, along with the InfraredSpace Observatory, INTEGRAL, SOHO, and others.Also, the Hubble space telescope is a joint project ofNASA and ESA. Future ESA-NASA joint projects in-clude the JamesWebb Space Telescope and the proposedLaser Interferometer Space Antenna. NASA has com-mitted to provide support to ESA’s proposed MarcoPolo-Rmission to return an asteroid sample to Earth for furtheranalysis. NASA and ESAwill also likely join together fora Mars Sample Return Mission.

6.4 Cooperation with other space agencies

Since China has started to invest more money into spaceactivities, the Chinese Space Agency has sought interna-tional partnerships. ESA is, beside the Russian SpaceAgency, one of its most important partners. Recently thetwo space agencies cooperated in the development of theDouble Star Mission.[83]

ESA entered into a major joint venture with Russiain the form of the CSTS, the preparation of FrenchGuiana spaceport for launches of Soyuz-2 rockets andother projects. With India, ESA agreed to send instru-ments into space aboard the ISRO's Chandrayaan-1 in2008.[84] ESA is also cooperating with Japan, the mostnotable current project in collaboration with JAXA is theBepiColombo mission to Mercury.Speaking to reporters at an air show near Moscow in Au-gust 2011, ESA head Jean-Jacques Dordain said ESA andRussia’s Roskosmos space agency would “carry out thefirst flight to Mars together.”[85]

6.5 International Space Station

See also: European contribution to the InternationalSpace StationWith regard to the International Space Station (ISS)ESA is not represented by all of its member states:[86]10 of the 21 ESA member states currently participatein the project.[note 1] ESA is taking part in the construc-tion and operation of the ISS with contributions such asColumbus, a science laboratory module that was brought

ISS module Columbus at Kennedy Space Center

into orbit by NASA’s STS-122 Space Shuttle mission andthe Cupola observatory module that was completed inJuly 2005 by Alenia Spazio for ESA. The current esti-mates for the ISS are approaching €100 billion in total(development, construction and 10 years of maintainingthe station) of which ESA has committed to paying €8billion.[87] About 90% of the costs of ESA’s ISS sharewill be contributed by Germany (41%), France (28%)and Italy (20%). German ESA astronaut Thomas Reiterwas the first long-term ISS crew member.ESA has developed the Automated Transfer Vehicle(ATV) for ISS resupply. Each ATV has a cargo capacityof 7,667 kilograms (16,903 lb).[88] The first ATV, JulesVerne, was launched on 9 March 2008 and on 3 April2008 successfully docked with the ISS. This manoeuvre,considered a major technical feat, involved using auto-mated systems to allow the ATV to track the ISS, movingat 27,000 km/h, and attach itself with an accuracy of 2cm.As of 2013, the spacecraft establishing supply links to theISS are the Russian Progress and Soyuz, European ATV,Japanese Kounotori (HTV), and the USACOTS programvehicles Dragon and Cygnus.European Life and Physical Sciences research on boardthe International Space Station (ISS) is mainly based onthe European Programme for Life and Physical Sciencesin Space programme that was initiated in 2001.

7 Miscellaneous

7.1 Languages

According to Annex 1, Resolution No. 8 of the ESAConvention and Council Rules of Procedure,[89] English,French and German may be used in all meetings of theAgency, with interpretation provided into these threelanguages. All official documents are available in En-glish and French with all documents concerning the ESA

10 11 REFERENCES

Council being available in German as well.

7.2 Facilities

• ESA Headquarters (HQ), Paris, France

• European Space Operations Centre (ESOC),Darmstadt, Germany

• European Space Research and Technology Centre(ESTEC), Noordwijk, The Netherlands

• European Space Astronomy Centre (ESAC),Madrid, Spain[90]

• European Centre for Space Applications andTelecommunications (ECSAT), Oxfordshire,United Kingdom[91]

• European Astronaut Centre (EAC), Cologne, Ger-many

• ESA Centre for Earth Observation (ESRIN),Frascati, Italy

• Guiana Space Centre (CSG), Kourou, FrenchGuiana

• European Space Tracking Network (ESTRACK)

8 ESA and the EU institutions

The EU flag is the one to be flown in space during mis-sions (for example it was flown by ESA’s Andre Kuipersduring Delta mission)The Commission is increasingly working together to-wards common objectives. Some 20 per cent of the fundsmanaged by ESA now originate from the supranationalbudget of the European Union.However, in recent years the ties between ESA and theEuropean institutions have been reinforced by the in-creasing role that space plays in supporting Europe’s so-cial, political and economic policies.The legal basis for the EU/ESA cooperation is providedby a Framework Agreement which entered into force inMay 2004. According to this agreement, the EuropeanCommission and ESA coordinate their actions throughthe Joint Secretariat, a small team of EC’s administra-tors and ESA executive. The Member States of the twoorganisations meet at ministerial level in the Space Coun-cil, which is a concomitant meeting of the EU and ESACouncils, prepared by Member States representatives inthe High-level Space Policy Group (HSPG).ESA maintains a liaison office in Brussels to facilitate re-lations with the European institutions.

8.1 Guaranteeing European access tospace

In May 2007, the 29 European countries expressed theirsupport for the European Space Policy in a resolution ofthe Space Council, unifying the approach of ESA withthose of the European Union and their member states.Prepared jointly by the European Commission and ESA’sDirector General, the European Space Policy sets outa basic vision and strategy for the space sector and ad-dresses issues such as security and defence, access tospace and exploration.Through this resolution, the EU, ESA and their MemberStates all commit to increasing coordination of their ac-tivities and programmes and their respective roles relatingto space.[92]

9 See also

• Agencies of the European Union and Enhanced co-operation

• European integration, section Space

• European Launcher Development Organisation(ELDO)

• European Space Policy

• European Space Research Organisation (ESRO)

• Eurospace

• List of directors general of the European SpaceAgency

• List of projects of the European Space Agency

• Space policy of the European Union

10 Notes[1] Ten ESA member states are participating: Belgium, Den-

mark, France, Germany, Italy, Netherlands, Norway,Spain, Sweden and Switzerland. Austria, Finland and Ire-land chose not to participate, because of lack of interestor concerns about the expense of the project. The UnitedKingdom withdrew from the preliminary agreement be-cause of concerns about the expense of the project. Por-tugal, Luxembourg, Greece, the Czech Republic, Roma-nia and Poland joined ESA after the agreement had beensigned.

11 References[1] “ESA Budget for 2015”. esa.int. 16 January 2015.

11

[2] “Convention for the establishment of a European SpaceAgency” (PDF). ESA. 2010. Retrieved 16 November2014.

[3] “ESA Budget for 2013”. esa.int. 24 January 2013.

[4] “ESA turns 30! A successful track record for Europe inspace” (Press release). European Space Agency. 31 May2005.

[5] “Launchers Home: International cooperation”. ESA. Re-trieved 6 September 2014.

[6] Article II, Purpose, Convention of establishment of a Eu-ropean Space Agency, SP-1271(E) from 2003 .“ESA’sPurpose”. European Space Agency. 14 June 2007. Re-trieved 6 September 2014.

[7] “Launching a New Era with JAXA: Interview with Jean-Jacques Dordain”. JAXA. 31 October 2003.

[8] “About ESA - Romania accedes to ESA Convention”.ESA. Retrieved 14 January 2012.

[9] “ESA programmes with Czech participation” (PDF).Czech Space Office. 2009. Archived from the original(PDF) on 11 May 2013.

[10] “ESA budget for 2009” (PDF). ESA. January 2009. Re-trieved 6 September 2014.

[11] “ESA budget for 2011” (PPT). ESA. Retrieved 6 Septem-ber 2014.

[12] “ESA budget for 2013” (JPG). ESA. Retrieved 6 Septem-ber 2014.

[13] “ESA Budget for 2014”. esa.int. 29 January 2015.

[14] Poncelet, Jean-Pol; Fonseca-Colomb, Anabela; Grilli,Giulio (November 2004). “Enlarging ESA? After the Ac-cession of Luxembourg and Greece” (PDF). ESA Bulletin(120): 48–53.

[15] “New Member States”. esa.int. ESA. Retrieved 25 July2012.

[16] “Polish flag raised at ESA”. esa.int. ESA. Retrieved 6September 2014.

[17] “Luxembourg becomes ESA’s 17th Member State”.esa.int. ESA. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[18] “Greece becomes 16th ESA Member State”. esa.int.ESA. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[19] “Portugal becomes ESA’s 15th Member State”. esa.int.ESA. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[20] “N° 9-1994: Finland becomes ESA’s 14th MemberState”. esa.int. ESA. Retrieved 25 July 2012.

[21] ESA Convention (7th ed.). European Space Agency Com-munications, ESTEC. December 2010. ISBN 978-92-9221-410-4. ISSN 0379-4067.

[22] Leclerc, G.; Lessard, S. (November 1998). “Canada andESA: 20 Years of Cooperation” (PDF). ESA Bulletin (96).ISBN 92-9092-533-7.

[23] Dotto, Lydia (May 2002). Canada and The EuropeanSpace Agency: Three Decades of Cooperation (PDF). Eu-ropean Space Agency.

[24] “Framework Agreement between the European Com-munity and the European Space Agency”. Consil-ium.europa.eu. Retrieved 29 August 2011.

[25] “ESA and Canada renew cooperation agreement, build-ing on long-term partnership” (Press release). EuropeanSpace Agency. 21 June 2000. Retrieved 6 September2014.

[26] “Minister Clement Welcomes Extension of Historic Part-nership with European Space Agency” (Press release). In-dustry Canada. 15 December 2010.

[27] “Europe and Canada: Partners in Space AModel of Inter-national Co-Operation” (Press release). Canadian SpaceAgency. 15 December 2010.

[28] “Disclosure of grants and contributions awards FiscalYear 2013-2014 4th quarter”. Canadian Space Agency.2 January 2014.

[29] de Selding, Peter B. (2015-07-29). “Tough Sledding forProposed ESA Reorganization”. Space News. Retrieved28 July 2015. The four biggest ESA contributors, Germanyand France followed by Italy and Britain – together ac-count for 67 percent of the agency’s funding – and more ifthe annual contribution from the European Union is takeninto account.

[30] “ESA and the EU”. European Space Agency. 9 October2008.

[31] “ESA budget for 2009” (PDF). European Space Agency.January 2009.

[32] “ESA budget for 2010” (PDF). European Space Agency.January 2010.

[33] “ESA budget for 2011” (ppt). European Space Agency.January 2011.

[34] “Le CNES en bref”. http://www.cnes.fr''. CNES. Re-trieved 11 August 2013.

[35] Zufferey, Bernard (22 November 2006). “The Plan forEuropean Co-operating States (PECS): Towards an en-larged ESA Partnership” (PDF). European Space Agency.Retrieved 21 July 2014.

[36] “PECS: General Overview”. European Space Agency.

[37] “ESA signs Cooperation Agreement with Turkey”. Eu-ropean Space Agency. 6 September 2004. Retrieved 6September 2014.

[38] “A cooperation agreement between the Government ofUkraine and the European Space Agency was signed inParis”. State Space Agency of Ukraine. Retrieved 25 Jan-uary 2008.

[39] “Slovenian Government and ESA Sign CooperationAgreement”. Slovenian Government Communication Of-fice. 28 May 2008. Archived from the original on 8 June2008.

12 11 REFERENCES

[40] “Slovenia becomes sixth ESA European CooperatingState”. ESA. 25 January 2010. Retrieved 6 September2014.

[41] “European Space Agency selects and confirms ten Slove-nian proposals”. Ministry of Higher Education, Scienceand Technology of Slovenia. 3 December 2010. Re-trieved 6 December 2010.

[42] “Līgums ar Kosmosa aģentūru liks tiekties pēc augstākiemrezultātiem”. Diena.lv (in Latvian). 23 July 2009. Re-trieved 24 July 2009.

[43] “Latvia becomes seventh ESA European CooperatingState”. esa.int. ESA. Retrieved 19 March 2013.

[44] “Signature of the PECS Charter between ESA andLatvia”. ESA. 31 January 2015. Retrieved 31 January2015.

[45] “Cyprus signs space agreement”. Famagusta Gazette On-line. 28 August 2009. Retrieved 30 August 2009.

[46] “Slovak Republic signs Cooperation Agreement”. ESA. 4May 2010. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[47] http://www.esa.int/About_Us/Welcome_to_ESA/Slovakia_becomes_ninth_ESA_European_Cooperating_State

[48] Danuta Pavilenene (7 October 2010). “Lithuania signsagreement with European Space Agency”. The BalticCourse.

[49] ESA (10 October 2014). “Lithuania becomes eighth ESAEuropean Cooperating State”.

[50] “Lithuanian Space Association”. Lietuvos Kosmoso Aso-ciacija. Retrieved 4 July 2014.

[51] “Lithuania Signs Cooperation Agreement”. EuropeanSpace Agency. 12 October 2010. Retrieved 4 July 2014.

[52] “Israel signs Cooperation Agreement”. ESA.int. 31 Jan-uary 2011. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[53] “Malta signs Cooperation Agreement”. ESA. 23 February2012. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[54] “Malta exploring ways of collaborating with EuropeanSpace Agency”. EARSC. 20 June 2009.

[55] http://www.esa.int/About_Us/Welcome_to_ESA/Bulgaria_becomes_tenth_ESA_European_Cooperating_State

[56] http://www.esa.int/esapub/br/br268/br268.pdf

[57] http://www.parabolicarc.com/2015/04/13/55053/

[58] “Launch vehicles - Ariane 5”. www.esa.int. Retrieved 20May 2014.

[59] “Ariane 5 ES”. ESA. Retrieved 8 September 2014.

[60] “Launch vehicle Ariane 5 ME”. www.esa.int. Retrieved20 May 2014.

[61] “Liftoff! Soyuz begins its maidenmission from the Space-port”. 21 October 2011. Retrieved 23 August 2014.

[62] “Russia ships Soyuz carrier rockets to Kourou spaceport”.RIA Novosti. 7 November 2009. Retrieved 6 September2014.

[63] “ESA’s new Vega launcher scores success on maidenflight”. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[64] “Vega - Launch Vehicle”. ESA. 10 May 2013. Retrieved1 May 2014.

[65] “VEGA - A European carrier for small satellites”. ASI.2012. Archived from the original on 1 May 2014.

[66] Svitak, Amy (10 March 2014). “SpaceX Says Falcon9 To Compete For EELV This Year”. Aviation Week.Retrieved 11 March 2014. ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain is aiming to reduce the agency’s develop-ment and operational costs in a stark departure from pastpractice: Until now, the Ariane family of rockets has beenbuilt largely with money contributed by ESA governmentsseeking to participate in the program rather than throughcompetitive industry bids. This means governments commitmultiyear funding to the development with the expectationof a roughly 90% return on investment in the form of in-dustrial workshare. But in July, when Dordain presentsESA’s member states with industry proposals for buildingthe Ariane 6, he will seek government contributions basedon the best value for money, not geographic return on in-vestment. 'To have competitive launchers, we need to re-think the launch sector in Europe.'

[67] “Closing in on new astronauts”. European Space Agency.24 September 2008. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[68] McKie, Robin (22 May 2005). “Europe to hitch spaceride on Russia’s rocket”. The Observer.

[69] Coppinger, Rob. “EADS Astrium wins €21 million reen-try vehicle study”. Flightglobal.com. Retrieved 29 August2011.

[70] Robin McKie (17 November 2012). “Project Orion raiseshopes that Britain could have its own man on the moon”.The Observer. Retrieved 3 September 2014.

[71] Clark, Stephen (8 January 2014). “Europe eyes cooper-ation on Dream Chaser space plane”. Spaceflight Now.Archived from the original on 9 January 2014. Retrieved9 January 2014.

[72] “One docking ring to rule them all”. ESA. 3 June 2014.Retrieved 3 September 2014.

[73] “ESA and Argentina sign extension of CooperationAgreement”. European SpaceAgency. 20May 2008. Re-trieved 6 September 2014.

[74] “ESA on the world stage – international agreements withBrazil, Poland and India”. European Space Agency. 1February 2002. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[75] “Closer relations between ESA and China”. Space Daily.21 November 2005. Retrieved 6 September 2014.

[76] “Agreement signed for European instruments onChandrayaan-1”. European Space Agency. 1 July 2005.Retrieved 6 September 2014.

13

[77] “Agreements 2003” (PDF). ESA Annual Report 2003(PDF). European Space Agency. pp. 112–113.

[78] http://www.esa.int/About_Us/Industry/ESA_signs_Cooperation_Agreement_with_Turkey

[79] Millett, Lucy (29 August 2009). “Opening up the gate tospace”. Cyprus Mail. Retrieved 30 August 2009.

[80] “Former astronaut MEP backs Europe’s stellar ambi-tions”. European Parliament. 28 November 2008. Re-trieved 28 November 2008.

[81] Coppinger, Rob (14 October 2009). “2010 tosee European Union human spaceflight decision”.Flightglobal.com. Retrieved 18 October 2009.

[82] “Space exploration: European Ministers in Prague pre-pare a roadmap towards a common vision”. EuropeanSpace Agency. 14 October 2009. Retrieved 6 Septem-ber 2014.

[83] An interview with David Southwood, ESA Science Director(Video). Space.co.uk. 29 March 2008.

[84] “David Southwood at the 2008 UK Space Conference”.Space.co.uk. 29 March 2008.

[85] “Russian, European space agencies to team up for Marsmission | RIA Novosti”. En.rian.ru. 17 August 2011. Re-trieved 29 August 2011.

[86] “International Space Station legal framework”. EuropeanSpace Agency. 19 November 2013. Retrieved 6 Septem-ber 2014.

[87] “International Space Station: How much does it cost?".European Space Agency. 9 August 2005. Retrieved 6September 2014.

[88] “Automated Transfer Vehicle (ATV) Utilisation RelevantData Rev. 1.2” (PDF). ESA ERASMUS User Centre.

[89] “Annex 1 Resolution 8”. ESA Convention and CouncilRules of Procedure (PDF) (5th ed.). European SpaceAgency. March 2010. p. 116. ISBN 92-9092-965-0.

[90] “Contact ESAC”. European Space Agency. 14 October2009.

[91] “Esa opens its doors in uk” (Press release). EuropeanSpace Agency. 14 May 2013. Retrieved 29 July 2013.

[92] ESA and the EU

12 Further reading

• ESA Bulletin () is a quarterly magazine about thework of ESA that can be subscribed to free ofcharge.

• Bonnet, Roger; Manno, Vittorio (1994). Interna-tional Cooperation in Space: The Example of the Eu-ropean Space Agency (Frontiers of Space). HarvardUniversity Press. ISBN 0-674-45835-4.

• Johnson, Nicholas (1993). Space technologies andspace science activities of member states of the Euro-pean Space Agency. OCLC 29768749 .

• Peeters, Walter (2000). Space Marketing: A Euro-pean Perspective (Space Technology Library). ISBN0-7923-6744-8.

• Zabusky, Stacia (1995 and 2001). Launching Eu-rope: An Ethnography of European Cooperation inSpace Science. ISBN B00005OBX2.

• Harvey, Brian (2003). Europe’s Space Programme:To Ariane and Beyond. ISBN 1-85233-722-2.

13 External links• Official website

• A European strategy for space – Europa

• Convention for the establishment of a EuropeanSpace Agency, September 2005

• Convention for the Establishment of a EuropeanSpace Agency, Annex I: Privileges and Immunities

• European Space Agency fonds and 'Oral History ofEurope in Space' project run by the European SpaceAgency at the Historical Archives of the EU in Flo-rence

Coordinates: 48°50′54″N 2°18′15″E / 48.8482°N2.3042°E

14 14 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

14 Text and image sources, contributors, and licenses

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• File:ESA_LOGO.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/3/3b/ESA_LOGO.svg License: Fair use Contributors:Extracted from a PDF on ESA.eu. Original artist: ?

• File:ESA_and_EU.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6a/ESA_and_EU.png License: CCBY-SA 3.0 Con-tributors: Own work (Original text: I created this work entirely by myself.) Original artist: Alinor (talk)

• File:ESA_logo_simple.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/6e/ESA_logo_simple.svg License: Public do-main Contributors:

• ESA_logo.svg Original artist: ESA_logo.svg: ESA• File:European_Space_Agency_tight.png Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/ad/European_Space_Agency_tight.png License: CC BY-SA 3.0 Contributors: This file was derived from: European Space Agency Enlargement.pngOriginal artist: Original by Alinor, modifications by U5K0

• File:Flag_of_Algeria.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/77/Flag_of_Algeria.svg License: Public domainContributors: SVG implementation of the 63-145 Algerian law "on Characteristics of the Algerian national emblem" ("Caractéristiques duDrapeau Algérien", in English). Original artist: This graphic was originaly drawn by User:SKopp.

• File:Flag_of_Argentina.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1a/Flag_of_Argentina.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Based on: http://manuelbelgrano.gov.ar/bandera/creacion-de-la-bandera-nacional/ Original artist: (Vector graphics byDbenbenn)

• File:Flag_of_Australia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/b9/Flag_of_Australia.svg License: Public domain Con-tributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Austria.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Flag_of_Austria.svg License: Public domainContributors: Own work, http://www.bmlv.gv.at/abzeichen/dekorationen.shtml Original artist: User:SKopp

• File:Flag_of_Azerbaijan.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/dd/Flag_of_Azerbaijan.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: http://www.elibrary.az/docs/remz/pdf/remz_bayraq.pdf and http://www.meclis.gov.az/?/az/topcontent/21 Originalartist: SKopp and others

• File:Flag_of_Bangladesh.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f9/Flag_of_Bangladesh.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: http://www.dcaa.com.bd/Modules/CountryProfile/BangladeshFlag.aspx Original artist: User:SKopp

• File:Flag_of_Belarus.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/85/Flag_of_Belarus.svg License: Public domainContributors: http://www.tnpa.by/ViewFileText.php?UrlRid=52178&UrlOnd=%D1%D2%C1%20911-2008 Original artist: Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Belgium.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/65/Flag_of_Belgium.svg License: Public domainContributors: Van den Bussche, E., Chief of Protocol, Belgian Federal Department of the Interior (2008) Noble Belgique, ô Mère chérie -LE PROTOCOLE EN BELGIQUE (PROTOCOL IN BELGIUM), Heule: Editions UGA ISBN: 9789067689359. Original artist: Dbenbenn andothers

• File:Flag_of_Belgium_(civil).svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/92/Flag_of_Belgium_%28civil%29.svgLicense: Public domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Brazil.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/05/Flag_of_Brazil.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Origi-nal artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Bulgaria.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9a/Flag_of_Bulgaria.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: The flag of Bulgaria. The colors are specified at http://www.government.bg/cgi-bin/e-cms/vis/vis.pl?s=001&p=0034&n=000005&g= as: Original artist: SKopp

• File:Flag_of_Canada.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cf/Flag_of_Canada.svg License: PD Contributors: ?Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Colombia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/21/Flag_of_Colombia.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Drawn by User:SKopp Original artist: SKopp

• File:Flag_of_Cyprus.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Flag_of_Cyprus.svg License: Public domainContributors: Own work Original artist: User:Vzb83

• File:Flag_of_Denmark.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9c/Flag_of_Denmark.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Own work Original artist: User:Madden

16 14 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

• File:Flag_of_Egypt.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fe/Flag_of_Egypt.svg License: CC0 Contributors:From the Open Clip Art website. Original artist: Open Clip Art

• File:Flag_of_Estonia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/8f/Flag_of_Estonia.svg License: Public domainContributors: http://www.riigikantselei.ee/?id=73847Original artist: Originally drawn by User:SKopp. Blue colour changed by User:PeepPto match the image at [1].

• File:Flag_of_Europe.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b7/Flag_of_Europe.svg License: Public domainContributors:

• File based on the specification given at [1]. Original artist: User:Verdy p, User:-xfi-, User:Paddu, User:Nightstallion, User:Funakoshi,User:Jeltz, User:Dbenbenn, User:Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Finland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/bc/Flag_of_Finland.svg License: Public domainContributors: http://www.finlex.fi/fi/laki/ajantasa/1978/19780380 Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp

• File:Flag_of_France.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/c3/Flag_of_France.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Orig-inal artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Germany.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/b/ba/Flag_of_Germany.svg License: PD Contributors: ?Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Ghana.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/19/Flag_of_Ghana.svg License: Public domainContributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Greece.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Flag_of_Greece.svg License: Public domainContributors: own code Original artist: (of code) cs:User:-xfi- (talk)

• File:Flag_of_Hungary.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/c1/Flag_of_Hungary.svg License: Public do-main Contributors:

• Flags of the World – Hungary Original artist: SKopp• File:Flag_of_India.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/41/Flag_of_India.svg License: Public domain Contributors:? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Indonesia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/9f/Flag_of_Indonesia.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Law: s:id:Undang-Undang Republik Indonesia Nomor 24 Tahun 2009 (http://badanbahasa.kemdiknas.go.id/lamanbahasa/sites/default/files/UU_2009_24.pdf) Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp, rewritten by User:Gabbe

• File:Flag_of_Iran.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ca/Flag_of_Iran.svg License: Public domain Contrib-utors: URL http://www.isiri.org/portal/files/std/1.htm and an English translation / interpretation at URL http://flagspot.net/flags/ir'.htmlOriginal artist: Various

• File:Flag_of_Ireland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/45/Flag_of_Ireland.svg License: Public domainContributors: Drawn by User:SKopp Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Israel.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d4/Flag_of_Israel.svg License: Public domain Con-tributors: http://www.mfa.gov.il/MFA/History/Modern%20History/Israel%20at%2050/The%20Flag%20and%20the%20Emblem Origi-nal artist: “The Provisional Council of State Proclamation of the Flag of the State of Israel” of 25 Tishrei 5709 (28 October 1948) providesthe official specification for the design of the Israeli flag.

• File:Flag_of_Italy.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/0/03/Flag_of_Italy.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Originalartist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Japan.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9e/Flag_of_Japan.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Origi-nal artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Kazakhstan.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d3/Flag_of_Kazakhstan.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: own code, construction sheet Original artist: -xfi-

• File:Flag_of_Latvia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/8/84/Flag_of_Latvia.svg License: Public domainContributors: Drawn by SKopp Original artist: Latvija

• File:Flag_of_Lithuania.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/11/Flag_of_Lithuania.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Own work Original artist: SuffKopp

• File:Flag_of_Luxembourg.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/da/Flag_of_Luxembourg.svg License: Pub-lic domain Contributors: Own work http://www.legilux.public.lu/leg/a/archives/1972/0051/a051.pdf#page=2, colors from http://www.legilux.public.lu/leg/a/archives/1993/0731609/0731609.pdf Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp

• File:Flag_of_Malaysia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/6/66/Flag_of_Malaysia.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: Create based on the Malaysian Government Website (archive version)Original artist: SKopp, Zscout370 and Ranking Update

• File:Flag_of_Malta.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Flag_of_Malta.svg License: CC0 Contributors:? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Mexico.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fc/Flag_of_Mexico.svg License: Public domainContributors: This vector image was created with Inkscape. Original artist: Alex Covarrubias, 9 April 2006

• File:Flag_of_Mongolia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/4c/Flag_of_Mongolia.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Current version is SVG implementation of the Mongolian flag as described by Mongolian National Standard MNS6262:2011 (Mongolian State Flag. General requirements [1]Original artist: User:Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Nigeria.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/79/Flag_of_Nigeria.svg License: Public domainContributors: ? Original artist: ?

14.2 Images 17

• File:Flag_of_North_Korea.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/51/Flag_of_North_Korea.svg License:Public domain Contributors: Template: Original artist: Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Norway.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d9/Flag_of_Norway.svg License: Public domainContributors: Own work Original artist: Dbenbenn

• File:Flag_of_Pakistan.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/32/Flag_of_Pakistan.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: The drawing and the colors were based from flagspot.net. Original artist: User:Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Poland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/1/12/Flag_of_Poland.svg License: Public domain Contrib-utors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Portugal.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/5/5c/Flag_of_Portugal.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: http://jorgesampaio.arquivo.presidencia.pt/pt/republica/simbolos/bandeiras/index.html#imgs Original artist: Colum-bano Bordalo Pinheiro (1910; generic design); Vítor Luís Rodrigues; António Martins-Tuválkin (2004; this specific vector set: see sources)

• File:Flag_of_Romania.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/73/Flag_of_Romania.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Own work Original artist: AdiJapan

• File:Flag_of_Russia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/f/f3/Flag_of_Russia.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Origi-nal artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Singapore.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/48/Flag_of_Singapore.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: The drawing was based from http://app.www.sg/who/42/National-Flag.aspx. Colors from the book: (2001). TheNational Symbols Kit. Singapore: Ministry of Information, Communications and the Arts. pp. 5. ISBN 8880968010 Pantone 032 shade fromhttp://www.pantone.com/pages/pantone/colorfinder.aspx?c_id=13050 Original artist: Various

• File:Flag_of_Slovakia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/e6/Flag_of_Slovakia.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Own work; here, colors Original artist: SKopp

• File:Flag_of_Slovenia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f0/Flag_of_Slovenia.svg License: Public domainContributors: Own work construction sheet from http://flagspot.net/flags/si%27.html#coa Original artist: User:Achim1999

• File:Flag_of_South_Africa.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/af/Flag_of_South_Africa.svg License:Public domain Contributors: Per specifications in the Constitution of South Africa, Schedule 1 - National flag Original artist: Flag de-sign by Frederick Brownell, image by Wikimedia Commons users

• File:Flag_of_South_Korea.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/09/Flag_of_South_Korea.svg License:Public domain Contributors: Ordinance Act of the Law concerning the National Flag of the Republic of Korea, Construction and colorguidelines (Russian/English) ← This site is not exist now.(2012.06.05) Original artist: Various

• File:Flag_of_Spain.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/9/9a/Flag_of_Spain.svg License: PD Contributors: ? Originalartist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Sweden.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/4c/Flag_of_Sweden.svg License: PD Contributors: ?Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Switzerland.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/f3/Flag_of_Switzerland.svg License: Publicdomain Contributors: PDF Colors Construction sheet Original artist: User:Marc Mongenet

Credits:• File:Flag_of_Thailand.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Flag_of_Thailand.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: Own work Original artist: Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_Tunisia.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/ce/Flag_of_Tunisia.svg License: Public domainContributors: http://www.w3.org/ Original artist: entraîneur: BEN KHALIFA WISSAM

• File:Flag_of_Turkey.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b4/Flag_of_Turkey.svg License: Public domainContributors: Turkish Flag Law (Türk Bayrağı Kanunu), Law nr. 2893 of 22 September 1983. Text (in Turkish) at the website of theTurkish Historical Society (Türk Tarih Kurumu) Original artist: David Benbennick (original author)

• File:Flag_of_Turkmenistan.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/1/1b/Flag_of_Turkmenistan.svg License:Public domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_Ukraine.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/49/Flag_of_Ukraine.svg License: Public domainContributors: ДСТУ 4512:2006 - Державний прапор України. Загальні технічні умови

SVG: 2010

Original artist: України• File:Flag_of_Venezuela.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/0/06/Flag_of_Venezuela.svg License: Public do-main Contributors: official websites Original artist: Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_the_Arab_League.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2b/Flag_of_the_Arab_League.svg Li-cense: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Flad

• File:Flag_of_the_Czech_Republic.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Flag_of_the_Czech_Republic.svg License: Public domain Contributors:

• -xfi-'s file• -xfi-'s code• Zirland’s codes of colors

Original artist:(of code): SVG version by cs:-xfi-.

18 14 TEXT AND IMAGE SOURCES, CONTRIBUTORS, AND LICENSES

• File:Flag_of_the_Netherlands.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/20/Flag_of_the_Netherlands.svg Li-cense: Public domain Contributors: Own work Original artist: Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_the_People’{}s_Republic_of_China.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/f/fa/Flag_of_the_People%27s_Republic_of_China.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Own work, http://www.protocol.gov.hk/flags/eng/n_flag/design.html Original artist: Drawn by User:SKopp, redrawn by User:Denelson83 and User:Zscout370

• File:Flag_of_the_Philippines.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/9/99/Flag_of_the_Philippines.svg Li-cense: Public domain Contributors: The design was taken from [1] and the colors were also taken from a Government website Originalartist: User:Achim1999

• File:Flag_of_the_Republic_of_China.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/72/Flag_of_the_Republic_of_China.svg License: Public domain Contributors: [1] Original artist: User:SKopp

• File:Flag_of_the_Soviet_Union.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/a/a9/Flag_of_the_Soviet_Union.svg Li-cense: Public domain Contributors: http://pravo.levonevsky.org/ Original artist: СССР

• File:Flag_of_the_United_Arab_Emirates.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/c/cb/Flag_of_the_United_Arab_Emirates.svg License: Public domain Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/ae/Flag_of_the_United_Kingdom.svg Li-cense: PD Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Flag_of_the_United_Nations.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/2f/Flag_of_the_United_Nations.svg License: Public domain Contributors: Flag of the United Nations from the Open Clip Art website. Modifications by Denelson83,Zscout370 and Madden. Official construction sheet here.United Nations (1962) The United Nations flag code and regulations, as amended November 11, 1952, New York OCLC: 7548838. Originalartist: Wilfried Huss / Anonymous

• File:Flag_of_the_United_States.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/a/a4/Flag_of_the_United_States.svg License:PD Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Folder_Hexagonal_Icon.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/4/48/Folder_Hexagonal_Icon.svg License: Cc-by-sa-3.0 Contributors: ? Original artist: ?

• File:Increase2.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/b/b0/Increase2.svg License: Public domain Contributors:Own work Original artist: Sarang

• File:Location_ESA_member_countries.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/47/Location_ESA_member_countries.svg License: CC BY 3.0 Contributors: Own work Original artist: Ssolbergj

• File:People_icon.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/3/37/People_icon.svg License: CC0 Contributors: Open-Clipart Original artist: OpenClipart

• File:RocketSunIcon.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/d/d6/RocketSunIcon.svg License: Copyrighted freeuse Contributors: Self made, based on File:Spaceship and the Sun.jpg Original artist: Me

• File:Ulf_D._Merbold.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/7/74/Ulf_D._Merbold.jpg License: Public domainContributors: http://images.jsc.nasa.gov/luceneweb/caption.jsp?photoId=S91-52649 (cropped with jpegcrop) Original artist: NASA

• File:Vega_VV02_ready_for_liftoff.jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/c/cf/Vega_VV02_ready_for_liftoff.jpgLicense: Fair use Contributors: Original publication: http://spaceinimages.esa.int/Images/2013/05/Vega_VV02_ready_for_liftoff

Immediate source: http://spaceinimages.esa.int/var/esa/storage/images/esa_multimedia/images/2013/05/vega_vv02_ready_for_liftoff/12660330-3-eng-GB/Vega_VV02_ready_for_liftoff.jpg Original artist: ESA – S. Corvaja, 2013

• File:Views_in_the_Main_Control_Room_(12052189474).jpg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/4/41/Views_in_the_Main_Control_Room_%2812052189474%29.jpg License: CC BY-SA 3.0-igo Contributors: ESOC flickr, Credit: ESA -Jürgen Mai Original artist: European Space Agency

• File:Wikinews-logo.svg Source: https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/2/24/Wikinews-logo.svg License: CC BY-SA 3.0Contributors: This is a cropped version of Image:Wikinews-logo-en.png. Original artist: Vectorized by Simon 01:05, 2 August 2006 (UTC)Updated by Time3000 17 April 2007 to use official Wikinews colours and appear correctly on dark backgrounds. Originally uploaded bySimon.

14.3 Content license• Creative Commons Attribution-Share Alike 3.0