12 May 2025
LTU researcher helps plan ESA’s next big space mission
Axel Hagermann, Professor in atmospheric science, has been appointed to a European Space Agency (ESA) working group that’s planning one of Europe’s most exciting future space missions, namely exploring the icy moons of Saturn.
“I’m glad and excited to have been selected by ESA for this task and I hope I can contribute the lessons I learned from my involvement in several planetary landings” says Axel, who participated in lander and sample return missions to a comet, an asteroid, and also Saturn’s moon Titan.
The icy moons are more than just giant clumps of ice. Some of them harbour oceans below their icy shells and scientists believe that they could hold the key to answering one of humanity’s biggest questions: are we alone in the universe?
Currently the proposed “L4 mission” is in its early planning phase and the working team is considering a planetary probe to one or more of the moons of Saturn, with a target launch date in the 2040s.
The goal is to study whether some of the icy moons could support life or at least the chemical ingredients needed for it, with Enceladus being the top target.
Enceladus is especially intriguing. It’s a small moon with giant potential. When NASA’s Cassini spacecraft flew past it in the 2000s, it discovered plumes of water vapor shooting into space from its south pole. These plumes come from a hidden ocean beneath the ice and that ocean might be warmed by underwater vents, similar to the ones on Earth where life thrives without sunlight.
Titan, Saturn’s largest moon, is also a strong candidate. It has a thick atmosphere and lakes of liquid methane on its surface. While it is a very different environment from Earth, scientists believe complex organic chemistry could be taking place there, possibly like the early conditions that led to life here on Earth.
ESA has been evaluating three mission concepts. Two would focus on Enceladus, including one with a lander that could touch down and study the surface for over 20 days. A third concept would send a lander to Titan instead. These ideas are still under review, but if approved, the mission could fly after ESA’s current JUICE mission and NASA’s Europa Clipper—both also aimed at exploring ocean worlds.
With Axel Hagermann contributing his expertise to the mission planning, Luleå University of Technology plays a key role in this bold step toward uncovering the secrets of our cosmic neighbours. And who knows maybe Enceladus or Titan will be the place where we find the first evidence of life beyond Earth.
For more information on ESA’s next big mission to explore the solar system, click the link:
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