The agency hopes to send at least two more astronauts to the International Space Station before 2030.
The European Space Agency’s Ariane 6 rocket carrying two Galileo satellites for the the EU’s Global Navigation Satellite System launches at the Guiana Space Centre on Dec. 17, 2025. Ronan Lietar/AFP via Getty Images
|Updated:
When French astronaut Sophie Adenot lifts off to the International Space Station with NASA’s SpaceX Crew-12 mission, she will continue the European Space Agency’s tradition of essentially hitching a ride to space.
Since its initial founding in 1975, the European Space Agency has continued to opt out of building and flying its own manned spacecraft.
