Uploaded June 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
ESA’s Prospect mission is a key stepping stone on our journey back to the Moon and beyond.
Prospect has a suite of instruments that will drill beneath the surface of the Moon’s polar regions, extract samples, and analyse them to search for volatiles such as water ice. Volatiles are potential sources of water, oxygen, and fuel for future explorers.
The package combines a drilling and sampling system (ProSEED) with a miniaturised laboratory (ProSPA) to extract the cold-trapped volatiles and determine their origin and abundance.
The mini lab will also test in-situ resource utilisation, such as oxygen extraction from lunar regolith – the layer of loose dust and rock on the Moon's surface.
Prospect operations will take place during the course of one lunar day, over about 10 Earth days.
Prospect will reach the lunar surface with the Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lunar lander on the IM-4 mission, as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, under an ESA–NASA agreement.
Prospect stands for Package for Resource Observation, in-Situ Prospecting for Exploration, Characterisation & Testing.
More information: www.esa.int/prospect
Credits: European Space Agency (ESA)
Access the video on the ESA video library: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Videos/2026/06/Prospect_mission_animation
★ Subscribe: bit.ly/ESAsubscribe and click twice on the bell button to receive our notifications.
We are Europe's gateway to space. Our mission is to shape the development of Europe's space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world. Check out https://www.esa.int/ to get up to speed on everything space related.
Copyright information about our videos is available here: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Terms_and_Conditions
ESA’s Prospect mission is a key stepping stone on our journey back to the Moon and beyond.
Prospect has a suite of instruments that will drill beneath the surface of the Moon’s polar regions, extract samples, and analyse them to search for volatiles such as water ice. Volatiles are potential sources of water, oxygen, and fuel for future explorers.
The package combines a drilling and sampling system (ProSEED) with a miniaturised laboratory (ProSPA) to extract the cold-trapped volatiles and determine their origin and abundance.
The mini lab will also test in-situ resource utilisation, such as oxygen extraction from lunar regolith – the layer of loose dust and rock on the Moon's surface.
Prospect operations will take place during the course of one lunar day, over about 10 Earth days.
Prospect will reach the lunar surface with the Intuitive Machines’ Nova-C lunar lander on the IM-4 mission, as part of NASA’s Commercial Lunar Payload Services (CLPS) initiative, under an ESA–NASA agreement.
Prospect stands for Package for Resource Observation, in-Situ Prospecting for Exploration, Characterisation & Testing.
More information: www.esa.int/prospect
Credits: European Space Agency (ESA)
Access the video on the ESA video library: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Videos/2026/06/Prospect_mission_animation
★ Subscribe: bit.ly/ESAsubscribe and click twice on the bell button to receive our notifications.
We are Europe's gateway to space. Our mission is to shape the development of Europe's space capability and ensure that investment in space continues to deliver benefits to the citizens of Europe and the world. Check out https://www.esa.int/ to get up to speed on everything space related.
Copyright information about our videos is available here: https://www.esa.int/ESA_Multimedia/Terms_and_Conditions
![How astronauts weigh themselves in space ⚖️ (Part 2) [French with English subtitles]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/gThIxuOiAtU/mqdefault.jpg "How astronauts weigh themselves in space ⚖️ (Part 2) [French with English subtitles]
Our astronaut Sophie Adenot shared this video on her social media channels with the caption:
[EN] Day 057, orbit 0896 – Sunday morning science with Sophie, episode 3: Weighing yourself in weightlessness, part 2 ⚖️.
The device used in this video to measure mass is called the Mass Measurement Device (MMD) or Измеритель Масс (ИМ) in Russian!
[FR] Jour 057, orbite 0896 – La science du dimanche matin avec Sophie, épisode 3 : se peser en micropesanteur, partie 2 ⚖️.
L’appareil utilisé dans cette vidéo pour mesurer la masse s’appelle le MMD (Mass Measurement Device) ou Измеритель Масс (ИМ) en russe.
📹 ESA/NASA
#ESA #Astronaut #ISS")
![Water and convex lenses 💧 [French with English subtitles]](https://i.ytimg.com/vi/hKm4uYatEGY/mqdefault.jpg "Water and convex lenses 💧 [French with English subtitles]
Our astronaut Sophie Adenot shared this video on her social media channels with the caption:
[EN] Day 072, orbit 1113 — Sunday morning science with Sophie, episode 5: Water and convex lenses.
[FR] Jour 072, orbite 1113 – La science du dimanche matin avec Sophie, épisode 5 : Eau et lentilles convexes.
📹 ESA/NASA
#ESA #Astronaut #ISS")
