spacetoday.net: Ministers approve ESA spending plans

Posted: Thu, Nov 27, 2008, 11:44 AM ET (1644 GMT)
ESA

Ministers of member nations of the European Space Agency (ESA) approved Wednesday a €10-billion (US$13-billion) spending plan for the agency that includes support for new spacecraft and improvements to the Ariane 5 launch vehicle. The programs approved at the two-day ministerial meeting in The Hague include new Earth science and meteorological spacecraft, the former being part of a joint program with the European Union called Copernicus. Ministers also agreed to build three more ATV cargo spacecraft for the ISS and start initial studies of a new version of the ATV that could return cargo to Earth. ESA won funding to develop Vinci, a new upper stage engine for the Ariane 5, that will increase that rocket's payload capacity. The planned ExoMars rover mission to the Red Planet also got funding at the meeting, although ESA will have to seek partnerships with the US, Russia, or other nations to fully fund the mission. In addition, ESA will establish a new research center in the UK that will focus on climate change research and space robotics.