ESA increases its presence in Barcelona

Published June 18, 2009

ESA increases its presence in Barcelona: new research facility, the Council meeting, and new events for 2010.

The month of June 2009 has seen a major presence of the European Space Agency (ESA) in Barcelona, with two major events happening in as many weeks:

• The inauguration, on June 4th, of the Micro Ecological Life Support System Alternative (MELiSSA) Pilot Plant, a major research facility to prepare for long-term human missions to other planets and to provide useful technology transfer to the food, health and environment industries. This impressive facility, located at the Campus of Universitat Autònoma of Barcelona (UAB) in Bellaterra, was inaugurated by Spain’s Minister for Science and Innovation Carmen Garmendia and by ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain. CTAE and its Board Member company NTE are among the many providers of technology and know-how in this international facility, which in addition to Spain, includes the participation of researchers and governmental support from Belgium, Canada and France. The inauguration took place in the framework of the European Advanced Life Support Workshop held at the UAB campus. The workshop marked 20 years of sustained European effort in this domain. More information on Melissa can be found through the following link:  http://www.esa.int/SPECIALS/Melissa/index.html
• The celebration, on June 10th and 11th, of ESA’s Council meeting, gathering delegates from its 18 member countries, the EU and cooperating states. Usually, the Council meets at the Agency’s Headquarters in Paris, but through an initiative of its current Chair Maurici Lucena, this meeting was held in his home town of Barcelona. Mr. Lucena, in his capacity of Director General of Spain’s Centre for Industrial Technology Development (CDTI), took the rotating position of Chair of the ESA Council in 2008. A formal dinner was hosted on June 10th by the President of the Government of the Generalitat of Catalonia and by the Mayor of Barcelona. In his speech, ESA’s Director General mentioned CTAE as an important player at the service of the aerospace industry.  Previous ESA events in Barcelona were organised in conjunction with the city’s Presidency of the Community of Ariane Cities (CVA): an “Astronauts night”, which in March 2006 gathered more than two thousand school children and general public around a group of 9 ESA astronauts, and the launch of an Ariane 5 rocket carrying the name of the City of Barcelona in December 2006.  For 2010, plans are well underway for the 7th International Planetary Probe Workshop (IPPW-7), to be held in Barcelona in June. This joint ESA-NASA event gathers professionals from around the world to discuss future robotic missions to the Solar System. The programme will include a Short Course on Planetary Protection on 12-13 June, the main workshop on and 14-18 June. CTAE is working with BAiE and other local and national partners to make this another successful meeting of the planetary exploration community.

Inauguration of the second generation MELiSSA pilot plant at the Universitat Autònoma of Barcelona, on 4 June 2009. Left to right: UAB Rector Ana Ripoll, Spanish Minister for Science and Innovation Cristina Garmendia and ESA Director General Jean-Jacques Dordain.

Photo credit: UAB

Officials visit the facility during the inauguration of the second generation MELiSSA pilot plant at the Universitat Autònoma of Barcelona, on 4 June 2009.

Photo credit: UAB

UAB’s leading researcher on MELiSSA, Prof. Francesc Gòdia, presented the project at CTAE during the Centre’s 4th anniversary celebration on 25 September 2008. Next to him is Ms. Glòria García Cuadrado, at the time CTAE’s Head of Human Spaceflight and Advanced Concepts, and currently Director of the Barcelona Aeronautics and Space Association (BAiE).

Photo credit: W. Schroeder, CTAE