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The European Space Agency (ESA) has established a research centre in the UK on the Harwell Science and Innovation campus (HSIC) in Oxfordshire. The ESA facility will focus upon three key areas: combining data and images from space to create new applications for everyday life; climate change modelling; and the development of novel power sources and innovative robotic technologies to explore space.
The establishment of the new ESA facility capitalises on the UK’s world-leading expertise in space science, earth observation and related technologies. The ESA facility is expected to be a key element of a much wider vision for the future of the UK’s fast-growing space economy, through the creation of an International Space Innovation Centre (ISIC) at Harwell.
UK science and industry have played a strong part in the success of ESA missions and this move will allow for a greater role in future ESA activities. The British National Space Centre (BNSC) and STFC worked together on the implementation plan for the Centre; the ATLAS centre was identified as a temporary site for the centre until purpose-built accommodation is built.