Three Potential Choices for ESA’s Upcoming Medium-Class Science Mission.

ESA has chosen three topics for its fourth medium-class mission in the Cosmic Vision science programme, set to launch in 2025. These topics include exoplanets, plasma physics, and the X-ray Universe. Alvaro Giménez, the Director of Science and Robotic Exploration, has decided to further study three candidate concepts for this mission: Ariel, Thor, and Xipe.

These concepts offer the opportunity to explore important scientific questions about our place in the Universe. Ariel would analyze the atmospheres of planets orbiting nearby stars, Thor would address plasma physics and the interaction between the solar wind and Earth’s magnetic field, and Xipe would study X-ray emissions from high-energy sources. This selection marks an important step in ESA’s long-term presence in space and its commitment to advancing scientific knowledge.

The first observatory capable of making high-resolution measurements of the polarization of these sources would be established, providing a new perspective on the high-energy Universe. From a total of 27 proposals, three mission concepts were chosen in response to ESA’s mission call to the scientific community last year.

Following a thorough study period to define the technical and scientific aspects of these concepts, one mission will be selected to fulfill the fourth medium-class (M4) opportunity in ESA’s Cosmic Vision 2015–2025 Plan, with a planned launch in 2025. Solar Orbiter, Euclid, and PLATO have already been designated as medium-class missions and are set to launch in 2018, 2020, and 2024 respectively.

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