ESA ECSAT: exploring the space innovation hub

The European Centre for Space Applications and Telecommunications (ECSAT) is part of the Harwell Science and Innovation Campus located a short distance from Oxford, United Kingdom. ECSAT is the headquarters of ESA’s Directorate of Connectivity and Secure Communications (CSC), serving as the agency’s key centre for telecommunications as well as hosting teams working in commercialisation, Earth observation, human and robotic exploration, space technology, engineering and quality.

ECSAT is home to numerous activities that make it a truly exciting place to work with an essential role to play in tackling the challenges we face on Earth and supporting onward exploration to the Moon and beyond.

In this edition of the newsletter, we delve into the exciting activities that take place at ECSAT. Read on as we take a closer look at the individuals behind the scenes and learn more about their roles, experiences and contributions to ESA's mission.

And should you wish to see ESA's activities in the UK in real life, the countdown to the first ESA Open Day at ECSAT is on!

On Saturday 29 June, as part of Harwell Campus Open Week, this ESA open day will include activities, talks and demonstrations to highlight the work taking place at ECSAT and on campus – from enabling next generation connectivity and developing space-empowered solutions for daily life, to supporting exploration and advancing climate action. Read more here .

Susanne Mecklenburg, Head of the Climate and Long-Term Action Division

Satellite-based Earth observation data is nowadays crucial in climate science. What are some ESA satellite missions or instruments that are particularly important for climate research and monitoring?

As a vehicle for research, satellites are vital. But rather than any single mission standing out, I would say that their true value comes from the global picture that they collectively paint. Of the 55 variables used by scientists and policymakers to monitor climate, two-thirds are exclusively or largely measured from space. It’s this ability to amass data across the atmosphere, oceans and land domains over several decades that enables climate scientists to provide early warning, predict future change and inform effective climate action.

Take sea-level for example, a key climate change indicator. With millimetre precision, the Copernicus Sentinel-6 mission is extending the 30-year altimeter record and, together with ESA’s CryoSat satellite and Copernicus Sentinel-3, these missions reveal a rising trend that has accelerated in recent years.

Not only do we know the rate of change, scientists working for the ESA Climate Change Initiative can also gauge the contribution of thermal expansion of sea water and the scale of ice loss from the polar ice sheets and glaciers. This knowledge can help to predict future trends and alert policymakers to vulnerable communities.

With the launch of ESA’s latest Earth Explorer science mission, EarthCARE , scientists will be able to observe for the first time how fast rain and snow fall, to improve storm prediction and aid flooding and blizzard preparations. It is also set to improve monitoring of aerosols and clouds, which remain the biggest area of uncertainty in our understanding of how the atmosphere drives the climate system. It is ESA’s most complex Earth Explorer mission to date and carries four scientific instruments: a cloud profiling radar provided by JAXA, an atmospheric lidar, a multispectral imager and a broadband radiometer. It is a marvel and I look forward to seeing its results.

What role do you see for space technology in mitigating and adapting to the impacts of climate change in the future?

Satellites are already helping evaluate collective progress towards achieving the UNFCCC Paris Agreement goals. But perhaps the bigger role for space technology will be enabling national governments to plan, monitor and verify emission reduction activities and climate action.

Countries are required to report greenhouse gas emissions against their pledged reduction commitments as their contribution to stabilising global temperatures. At present, this is done largely based on statistics and economic factors. In 2026 the Carbon Dioxide Monitoring mission (CO2M), one in a line of new Sentinel satellites that contribute to the Copernicus programme, will make this process a whole lot more accurate. The key advance is its ability to distinguish between emission plumes from human and natural sources and trace them back to the point of origin, enabling countries to not only track and report national emissions but also identify emission hotspots and evaluate the effectiveness of policy instruments in reducing emissions.

Advances in space sensor resolution are expected to equip decision-makers with the ability to observe globally and act locally. Already we can detect fires and land cover change down to around 20 metres. With global coverage at increasing reliability, satellites will be key tools for monitoring the implementation and effectiveness of projects that support sustainable growth and community adaptation. For example, new green and blue infrastructure such as parks can be monitored and evaluated for their ability to alleviate urban temperatures, enabling the local populations to adapt to the more frequent and severe heatwaves expected in the coming years.?

For aspiring candidates interested in working in the field of climate science and space technology at ESA, what advice would you offer?

Climate science isn’t a distinct subject, more an area of intense activity across multiple disciplines. I would advise any candidate to gain a strong academic grounding in any of the natural and physical sciences, maths, computer science or engineering – all are equally valuable.

Successful candidates also bring technical skills and experience in remote sensing or GIS, coding and data analysis or tool development. Artificial intelligence is rapidly transforming climate and data science and skills here will give a big advantage.

ESA also values candidates who understand and can make connections between science and the requirements of non-space organisations. Ultimately, it is these organisations that need the information, tools and support to deliver effective and sustainable climate action.

In terms of soft skills, presentation and project management skills are just as important to make your case compelling and to deliver on time, to budget.

Wael El-Dali, Moonlight System Manager

Please could you give us an overview of your experience in the field of system engineering?

The first part of my career in the satellite industry focused on system AIV, operations preparations, operational validation and commissioning of satellite communications (satcom) and Earth observation programmes. I further developed my skills as a space systems engineer by completing the highly competitive SpaceTech Master’s programme in 2008; I then moved to pursue a position as a system engineer for a large-scale Earth observation programme during its preparatory phases. In 2014 I joined ESA as a system engineer working mostly in the preparation of partnership programmes, which led me to join the Moonlight programme early in its inception in 2020. In the beginning of 2024, I had the privilege of being selected as System Manager for the Moonlight/LCNS project.

What are your main responsibilities working on the Moonlight/LCNS project?

I am responsible for leading a small team of very experienced system engineers in following up the industrial activities for building up the Moonlight/LCNS service and system infrastructure. My team also organises and conducts system-level reviews, follows up related standardisation and regulatory work and interacts with internal and external stakeholders (e.g. NASA and JAXA) to support potential inter-agency agreements for lunar communications and navigation service provision.

What advice would you give to potential candidates who would like to join the programme?

The Moonlight/LCNS system engineering work requires a good understanding of many inter-related technical aspects as well as the relationship between technical and programmatic aspects. In other words, to be successful you need to know a bit about everything. Understanding the system engineering process is key, so I would advise to invest a bit of time and effort in a good training – however, nothing is better than on-the-job training when it comes to system engineering.

Evelyne Simon, Space Segment Engineer

You are currently working as a Space Segment Engineer at ESA. One of your responsibilities is to manage R&D activities, under ARTES Advanced Technologies and ARTES Competitiveness & Growth Programmes . Could you tell us more about your work and the programmes’ vision for the future?

The ARTES Advanced Technologies (AT) and Artes Competitiveness & Growth (C&G) Programmes are complementary but different. For AT, I participate in the yearly workplan preparation. I'm the platform domain focal point, so I receive the submitted ideas related to the platform of the spacecraft. For those that meet the submission criteria, I assign each one an idea manager to be evaluated. Next, we review everything, rank the ideas, determine the budget and decide which activities we want to pursue. The board and programme managers make their selection and then a work plan is sent to the national delegations. Once the work plan is approved, invitations to tender can be released. This role gives me an overview of the development of different technologies and it’s a great opportunity for teamwork, so I am always learning and it’s very interesting.

The ARTES C&G Programme is different because it is proposed by industry. When they plan a project’s development and qualification, they send a proposal for us to evaluate. If the feedback is positive and a contract is agreed, we proceed with our colleagues in ESA and representatives from different industries, always keeping an emphasis on the competitiveness of European and Canadian telecom satellite industries. With C&G, I mainly work on the power subsystem. I’m the technical officer on various developments on solar cells, solar arrays and batteries. So, my job is always very interesting, very diverse, trying to see how to remain competitive and where we are in comparison with what is available worldwide.

You started at ESA as an Energy Storage Engineer. How did your role develop between then and now?

When I started in 2002, at ESTEC, I was working mainly on batteries and supercapacitors. I was responsible for the development of new energy storage and new battery chemistries and I was also performing reviews for ESA projects (Earth observation, science, navigation, telecommunications). As a battery expert in the ISS Payload safety panel, I reviewed the safety aspects of the batteries used by the European astronauts for their experiments on the ISS. I also worked a lot with NASA for this, which was very interesting.

In 2008, I became Head of the Energy Storage Section. In this role, I was responsible for defining the Electrochemical Energy Storage roadmaps, including short-, medium- and long-term developments. I was in charge of the battery test centre lab and managed a team of seven.? ??

After six years, I decided to get back into technology development and that is why I was interested in joining ARTES – an added bonus of which was coming back to the UK, where I lived before working for ESA. In order to join the programme, I received a training from my colleagues in solar generators, an opportunity that I was very grateful for. I think I was really lucky to be there at a moment when they were looking for people for ECSAT and I wanted to do something different. It’s not usual to move away from a line management position, but I think it was it was a good move for me. Before, I was supporting the programme directorates and now I am part of one. It's been very interesting to see both sides.

How would you describe the work environment at ECSAT?

ECSAT is a small site and just one building, so you know everyone and every face. The building and the offices are bright and we are privileged with our view of the countryside. We have a good canteen and people from other organisations on campus often come to us for lunch. We can also visit labs and companies on the campus and see what they’re doing. Even more interaction across the campus would be good, but that is in development as we speak.Another good thing about ECSAT is that is we have a lot of young people and trainees. We have a gym, social rooms, as well as clubs for different activities such as sailing, climbing, yoga and cultural excursions. For example, recently a group from ECSAT went to see a musical in London together. People are usually quite keen on doing things like that. Christmas is always a nice time, as there is not only the Christmas party at ECSAT, but also days out with the social clubs to enjoy things like Christmas markets. ?

Kamini Manick, Vulcan Analogue Sample Facility: Curator and Laboratory Coordinator

You are currently working at ESA’s Vulcan Facility . Can you tell us a bit about it and your work at the facility?

The Vulcan Facility is ECSAT’s newest laboratory and research centre. We have a team of geoscientists working on the curation, characterisation and research of analogue samples (known as simulants). Simulants are geological materials (rocks and soils) that are terrestrial but are like the rock and soil on other planetary bodies. My role involves leading the team on technical and research activities in the facility as well as general project and laboratory management. I am the main point of contact at the Vulcan Facility and I interact with European engineers and scientists working on many different types of space exploration and planetary science activities where simulants are needed.

How would you describe the importance of your work for human and robotic exploration?

Anything that involves the exploration of planetary surfaces requires simulants for testing before leaving Earth. Simulants are used to recreate planetary surfaces (such as in the case of the LUNA Facility at ESA’s European Astronaut Centre (EAC) in Cologne, Germany) which can then be used for various activities such as astronaut training and rover testing.

What are the biggest challenges of the Vulcan Facility activities?

One of the biggest challenges is developing standards and processes for simulants. This takes years to complete and requires a large network of people in industry, academia and ESA to collaborate and focus their efforts. Currently, we are mapping out the European simulants’ landscape to understand who is doing what with simulants. Activities are diverse and wide ranging, from quarrying/mining to processing and customising to data sharing. Another priority is to develop nomenclature to aid communication, particularly when interacting with collaborators from non-geoscientific backgrounds.

Katja Rak, ECSAT Local Representative and HR Advisor

Can you describe your current role as a Local HR Manager for ECSAT and your main responsibilities?

As the Local HR Manager for ECSAT, I primarily support our staff in their interactions with the UK authorities within the framework of the ESA-UK host agreement. I also support the Head of ECSAT, Laurent Jaffart, in his relations with the local and national authorities. ESA, as an intergovernmental organisation, has a special status and sometimes staff need my help in working out what they need to do in order to get established in the UK, especially if they come from another ESA Member State.

What types of roles you are currently hiring for at ECSAT?

Currently, at ECSAT, we are looking to fill a variety of positions that support our cutting-edge space research and technology initiatives. Primarily, we are seeking candidates for engineering positions, specialising in satellite communications, Earth observation technologies, platform and systems engineering.

For individuals aspiring to work at ESA ECSAT, what advice would you offer to help them with their application?

For those aspiring to join us at ECSAT, I would recommend that candidates customise their application: make sure your resume and cover letter are tailored to the position in order to highlight relevant experiences and skills that align with the specific job description. You need to demonstrate how your background fits with the role and our organisational goals.

Candidates should also emphasise their relevant experience, highlighting any experience in the space industry, international organisations or similar high-tech fields. Include specific examples of projects or roles that showcase both your technical and soft skills.

I would also advise candidates to stay connected to ESA. A great way to keep yourself updated on the latest developments in space technology and ESA's projects is by following ESA on LinkedIn.?

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