The European Space Agency (ESA) has decided to extend its participation in the International Space Station (ISS) until 2030, seconding its counterparts in the United States and Japan.
In a statement published today, ESA says that the ministers of the 22 Member States responsible for space have decided to “extend the agency’s participation” in the ISS until 2030, which will allow astronauts “to continue working in Earth orbit, aboard the European laboratory”. of Research Columbus”.
The decision was made at the ESA Ministerial Council, which met on Tuesday and today in Paris, France.
Portugal, one of the ESA Member States, was represented by the Minister of Science, Technology and Higher Education, Elvira Fortunato.
Recently, the American (NASA) and Japanese (JAXA) space agencies agreed to extend joint cooperation on the ISS until 2030.
Russia announced in 2021 its withdrawal from the ISS from 2025 and, driven by economic sanctions imposed by the West after the February invasion of Ukraine, it will build its own space station (the country already had an orbital station, Mir, between 1986 and 2001).
The International Space Station, the home and laboratory of Earth-facing astronauts, currently partners with NASA, ESA, JAXA, Roscosmos (Russia) and CSA (Canada).
The term for the exploration of the ISS, in these terms, ended in 2024.
Source: Observadora
