ESA at ILA 2026 – Day 2 highlights

The European Space Agency (ESA) continued its participation at ILA 2026 with a second day that combined high-level political engagement, public discussion and inspiring moments across the ‘Space Pavilion’.

‘Day 2’ opened with an exchange between ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher and the press and content creators on Europe’s priorities in space, including exploration, cybersecurity and the future of the European space sector. Among the topics discussed was the growing use by ESA of artificial intelligence in space activities – from handling the ever-increasing volume of Earth observation data to supporting missions such as Hera. The press conference can be rewatched here.

The official opening of ILA Space Day 2026 then turned firmly towards the future. Under the theme Space4Future, representatives from ESA, DLR, BDLI and the German Federal Ministry of Research, Technology and Space came together to discuss the developments likely to shape space activities in the years ahead. In this context, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher pointed to the opportunities ahead in areas such as security, in-orbit services and exploration, while underlining that Europe’s future in space will depend not only on technology, but also on the talent, motivation and shared vision that drive the sector forward.

That forward-looking perspective continued in the German-Italian Aerospace Forum, which explored how Europe can combine resilient Earth observation with secure satellite connectivity to improve monitoring, decision-making and the resilience of space-enabled services. In his keynote speech, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher stressed that these are strategic capabilities for Europe’s security, competitiveness and sovereignty, and that their full value depends on stronger European cooperation: connecting national strengths within a common framework to build greater autonomy and resilience for the whole continent.

Later in the day, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher joined an international panel with Walther Pelzer, Director General of the German Space Agency at DLR; François Jacq, Chairman and CEO of CNES; and Amit Kshatriya, Associate Administrator at NASA, to discuss the role of space agencies in a shifting global landscape.

Independent access to space was another strong theme on ‘Day 2’. ESA Director of Space Transportation Geraldine Naja joined a panel on how Europe can secure and scale its launch capabilities under changing geopolitical and market conditions. The discussion looked at how established systems such as Ariane 6 and Vega-C can be complemented by new commercial solutions, and how procurement, funding and industrial policy will need to work together to build a more competitive, resilient and sustainable European launcher ecosystem.

The day’s inspirational highlight came with the live in-flight call with ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot from the International Space Station, joined on the ground by ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher, ESA Director of Human and Robotic Exploration Daniel Neuenschwander, and ESA astronauts Alexander Gerst, Matthias Maurer and Thomas Reiter, the first European to carry out a long-duration mission on the ISS (2006).

The exchange offered a vivid insight into life and work in orbit, with Sophie speaking about the broad range of science being conducted on board, from medical research on cancer, ageing and immunity-related diseases to material science and fundamental physics, including experiments using ESA’s 3D printer. She also described educational activities connecting the Station with audiences on Earth, from biology lessons followed by thousands of schoolchildren to literary readings framed by views of Earth from the Cupola. Reflecting on both the challenge and the promise of spaceflight, the conversation underlined the collective effort behind every mission and the exciting opportunities still ahead (a replay of the full in-flight call is available here).

The day concluded with two further panel discussions highlighting Europe’s ambitions beyond Earth and the broader value of interoperable space services. ESA Director of Human and Robotic Exploration Daniel Neuenschwander joined a discussion on ‘Europe and the Moon: Capabilities and Next Steps’, while ESA Director of Technology, Engineering and Quality Dietmar Pilz took part in a panel on ‘From Space Services to Strategic Resilience’, focused on the role of interoperability in strengthening Europe’s future space capabilities.

All ESA pictures from ILA are available here.

All ESA video replays from ILA are available here.