![](\"http:\/\/www.esa.int\/var\/esa\/storage\/images\/esa_multimedia\/images\/2017\/03\/esoc_control_room_1978\/16868247-1-eng-GB\/ESOC_Control_Room_1978_small.jpg\")
<\/p>\n\t\t\t\t\t<\/p>\n
\nIn 2017, ESA\u2019s European Space Operations Centre will celebrate its 50th anniversary, having been inaugurated on 8 September 1967 as part of the European Space Research Organisation (ESRO).\n<\/p>\n
\nWithin months, the centre was controlling its first mission, ESRO-2B , a 74 kg satellite carrying seven instruments to study solar and cosmic radiation and their interaction with Earth and its magnetosphere.\n<\/p>\n
\nThe 1970s were a busy time at the control centre, with the number of missions steadily increasing.\n<\/p>\n
\nThe decade saw 10 new missions launched by ESRO, of which eight (HEOS-A2, TD-1A, ESRO-4, COS-B, GEOS-1, Meteosat-1, GEOS-2 and OTS-2) were operated from here.\n<\/p>\n
\nIn 1975, ESRO joined with the European Launcher Development Organisation (ELDO) to become the European Space Agency.\n<\/p>\n
\nToday, teams are operating comprising 18 spacecraft on 11 missions, including Mars Express, Gaia, ExoMars, Sentinel-1 and -2, and CryoSat. Twelve more missions are in preparation for launch in the next few years.\n<\/p>\n
\nMore information<\/b>\n<\/p>\n
\nESOC<\/a>\n<\/p>\n \nSpacecraft operations<\/a><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":" \nIn 2017, ESA’s European Space Operations Centre will celebrate its 50th anniversary, having been inaugurated on 8 September 1967 as part of the European Space Research Organisation (ESRO).\n<\/p>\n \nWithin months, the centre was controlling its first mission, ESRO-2B , a 74 kg satellite carrying seven instruments to study solar and cosmic radiation and their interaction with Earth and its magnetosphere.\n<\/p>\n \nThe 1970s were a busy time at the control centre, with the number of missions steadily increasing.\n<\/p>\n \nThe decade saw 10 new missions launched by ESRO, of which eight (HEOS-A2, TD-1A, ESRO-4, COS-B, GEOS-1, Meteosat-1, GEOS-2 and OTS-2) were operated from here.\n<\/p>\n \nIn 1975, ESRO joined with the European Launcher Development Organisation (ELDO) to become the European Space Agency.\n<\/p>\n \nToday, teams are operating comprising 18 spacecraft on 11 missions, including Mars Express, Gaia, ExoMars, Sentinel-1 and -2, and CryoSat. Twelve more missions are in preparation for launch in the next few years.\n<\/p>\n \nMore information<\/b>\n<\/p>\n<\/p>\n