Rosetta: the epic conclusion

| 22 September 2016

Extra, extra! You may have already heard all about it: Rosetta is nearing the end of its operational mission and will make a controlled impact on Comet 67P/C-G on 30 September. EJR-Quartz will be back at ESA’s Operations Centre in Darmstadt to help cover this grand finale, and we couldn’t be more excited. We were there in November 2014, supporting live coverage of the historic Philae landing across ESA and DLR channels. The #cometlanding social media campaign was hugely successful, attracting much press and tremendous public interest.

Since then, we have continued to support the Rosetta communications campaign, including social media channels like Rosetta’s Twitter handle, Facebook feed, and Instagram account. But that’s not all. Through our contract with ESA Science & Technology, we have sourced press kits as well as content for online articles, interactive tools and multimedia created by our partners at the Science Office.

Next week, we’ll be back at it, supporting ESA in relaying real time information via ESA’s web portal at esa.int and via the ESA and Rosetta Mission social media accounts. Look out for live tweets from @ESA_Rosetta and @esaoperations in particular, which will report on the status of Rosetta’s descent as well as share photos taken by the spacecraft as it gets ever-closer to the comet’s surface.

We are proud to be a part of the team communicating this historic mission to the world. Rosetta has been an exciting endeavour in science communication, and it has been a pleasure to work alongside mission experts to share this spacecraft’s incredible adventure with the public. And we aren’t the only ones inspired by Rosetta: in celebration of the success of this mission, ESA has launched the Rosetta Legacy campaign on Tumblr, to which many have posted their moving experiences with the Rosetta mission and what it has meant to them. You can view the site and submit here.

Humanity’s first ever #cometlanding comes full circle this 30 September. Join us for the epic conclusion to the Rosetta mission at rosetta.esa.int.

Manning the tweetdecks for #cometlanding 2014
Social media team at Rosetta #cometlanding 2014
The Rosetta mission flight team after receiving news of Philae’s comet touchdown. Our editor Emily in the left corner.

A helping hand for Sentinel Copernicus

| 12 September 2016

EJR-Quartz has signed a contract to supply editorial services for the EU Copernicus Sentinel User Handbook.

ESA is developing a new family of missions called Sentinels specifically for the operational needs of the Copernicus programme. Credit: ESA

ESA is developing a new family of missions called Sentinels specifically for the operational needs of the Copernicus programme.
Credit: ESA

Under the auspices of the EU’s Copernicus programme, the Sentinel User Handbook has been developed and maintained by ESA to provide information for expert users, Copernicus Sentinel data users and the wider Earth observation community.

The Copernicus programme is intended to set up a wide range of Earth observation capabilities. Users will be provided with information through services dedicated to systematic monitoring and forecasting of the state of the Earth’s subsystems. The European Commission has developed six themes: land monitoring, marine environment monitoring, emergency management, security and climate change.

EJR-Quartz will support mission managers and technical teams in highlighting results and EO applications under each of these themes.

The kickoff meeting took place Friday 9 September at ESA ESRIN, with ESA and EC technical officers.

A comet, an orbiter and a lander in Berlin

| 18 August 2016

Rosetta and Philae: two spacecraft that made history; Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko, a comet explored from orbit and from the surface. To celebrate this mission and educate the public about what makes comets so endlessly fascinating, the German Aerospace Center (DLR), the Berlin Museum of Natural History, the European Space Agency and the Max Planck Society have prepared the exhibition ‘Comets: The Rosetta Mission – A journey to the origins of the Solar System’. The exhibition kicked off on 9 August 2016 and will run until 24 January 2017 at the Berlin Museum of Natural History.

Among the highlights of the exhibition are a 1:1000 scale model of Comet 67P, a 1:1 scale model of the Philae lander, a 1:5 scale model of the Rosetta orbiter, the lander team logbook from landing day, coins depicting Ceasar’s comet from 44BC, videos about the mission and the scientific knowledge gained.

EJR-Quartz was involved in the development of the exhibition through close coordination with the German Aerospace Center (DLR). We provided our editorial services to deliver accurate English text in this bilingual exhibition (German/English), ensuring that the language was appropriate for museum visitors.

If you’re in Berlin, be sure to visit this remarkable exhibition!

Credit: CD Werbeagentur
Credit: CD Werbeagentur
Credit: CD Werbeagentur

Educating and Educational: the ESA Teachers’ Summer Workshop

| 1 August 2016

Every summer, ESA’s Education Office organizes a workshop for teachers from across Europe.  This year the workshop took place from 6 to 8 July at the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC), the Netherlands. Up to 70 teachers, both primary and secondary level, had the opportunity to do hands-on activities developed by the ESA Education Office and European Space Education Research Office (ESERO) national offices, attend lectures from top-level space experts, as well as get to know the daily life routine in the International Space Station as experienced by ESA astronaut Leopold Eyharts. As members of the ESA Education team, my fellow EJR-Quartz for ESA colleagues Anca Zinculescu, Karina de Castris, and myself thoroughly enjoyed helping to plan and execute this unique event.

As Science didactics expert, I helped develop the educational resources to be presented during the workshop. Working with ESA Kids editor Karina, we curated different teachers’ resources to identify what worked, translated these into English to make them readily available to all, and added info related to ESA and its missions. Our colleague Anca (Web and graphics designer) created the illustrations for the resources as well as the presentation templates.

During the three-day workshop, we presented workshops on different topics to primary- and secondary-level teachers as well as led the hands-on activities. Throughout the event, Anca published web articles and covered the workshop on social media (#ESATeach2016).

While helping to inspire teachers and to demonstrate how space can be used for teaching and learning STEM (Sciences, Technology, Engineering and Mathematics) subjects, we also had the chance to learn more about different space topics and to become familiar with amazing educational tools. This workshop was also a unique opportunity to connect directly with teachers from all over Europe. We look forward to next year’s Teachers’ Workshop!

Teachers resource kit.
Teachers exploring the resource booklets.
Lego Mindstorms EV3
ESA astronaut Leopold Eyhards giving his speech, with Paxi, the ESA Kids Mascot.
A space exploration presentation, featuring Paxi.
Teachers having fun during the hands-on activities. .
A slide from an Earth Observation session.
Former science teacher Fatima Pinto (far left) is Science Didactics expert for ESA.
Exploring a melting ice activity.
An Earth Observation Session.
Monica Talevi, head of the STEM unit for ESA Education, giving a speech. Featuring Paxi!
The hands-on rocket activity.

Say goodbye to Philae

| 28 July 2016

12 November 2014 – a remarkable day for humankind.  For the first time ever, we landed a robot on the surface of a comet. The robot lander Philae touched down on the surface of Comet 67P/Churyumov-Gerasimenko at 17:09 CET, having travelled 6.4 billion kilometres in 10 years as a passenger aboard ESA’s Rosetta comet chaser. Yesterday, on 27 July 2016, the Electrical Support System (ESS) on the European Rosetta spacecraft, which is used to communicate with Philae, was switched off to save energy until 30 September, the day the Rosetta mission will come to an end.

 

philae tweet

Philae’s tweet upon landing on comet 67P reached millions of people.

The robot lander Philae didn’t just land on a comet, he also told the world about it as he did it – another first! With a little help from EJR-Quartz for DLR, he reported the landing, step by step, in real time as @Philae2014, making the world a part of his mission. His landing tweet “Touchdown! My new address: 67P” reached millions of people.

This little robot made his way into the hearts of many – but the time has come to say #GoodbyePhilae.

We are supporting the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in a campaign that invites the world to say farewell to the lander. Participating is very easy! You can find out how to say goodbye to the first ever robot to land on a comet here.

Follow along on social media:

Twitter: @Philae2014 – @DLR_en – @DLR_de

DLR Facebook (German)

DLR Facebook (English)

DLR Instagram

DLR Flickr

The deepest goodbye received so far!
Goodbye from the Lander Control Centre team!

 

Asteroid Day and Beyond

| 18 July 2016

The largest asteroid impact on Earth in recent history occurred on 30 June 1908, in Tunguska, Siberia. The mid-air explosion flattened some 2,000 square kilometres of forest. Fast forward to 30 June 2015: Asteroid Day is launched by Grig Richters, German filmmaker, and Brian May, former Queen guitarist and astrophysicist, to raise awareness about asteroids and their potential danger.

Held on 30 June to commemorate the Tunguska event, Asteroid Day is a global awareness campaign aimed at educating the public on asteroids as well as how to protect the Earth in the event of a threat. Participating organizations are encouraged to host their asteroid-themed events locally as well as engage with the public online. This year, the European Space Agency participated in Asteroid Day. As ESA prepares to submit its candidate Asteroid Impact Mission (AIM) to the Ministerial Council for approval later in the year, Asteroid Day was the perfect opportunity to promote this and EJR-Quartz editors supported the campaign in a number of ways.

Scientific editor Linda Carrette supported the ESA AIM team in coordinating the creation of two unique multimedia tools to be released for Asteroid Day – an interactive, fun, mobile phone game, and a full-dome video of the AIM mission to be shown at participating Planetariums. At the European Space Research and Technology Centre (ESTEC) in Noordwijk, the Netherlands, Linda helped to set up an AIM stand for Asteroid Day.

Meanwhile, Technology editor Sean Blair worked on a number of special features for Asteroid Day, highlighting AIM and ESA’s Space Situational Awareness Programme. Sean also hosted a Facebook LIVE session featuring a demonstration of the physical asteroid model being used for the mission’s camera assessment. He was also among the group of ESA scientists, engineers, and communication officers that participated in the popular Reddit “Ask Me Anything” thread.

Chief social media publisher Maria Bennett was responsible for planning and coordinating ESA social media for Asteroid Day, liaising with the Asteroid Day founders.

It was an exciting day for all. While helping to promote asteroid awareness through ESA activities – where “every day is Asteroid Day” – our editors learned quite a bit themselves about the virtual organisation of Asteroid Day and reaching a mass audience through various media partners and influencers.

Dr. Linda Carrette has a PhD in Chemistry. She is an editor ESA’s General Studies Programme and is part of the German Aerospace Center (DLR) editorial team.
Behind the Scenes with editor Sean Blair as he hosts a Facebook LIVE session at ESTEC, the Netherlands.
Sean and AIM scientists and engineers during the Facebook LIVE demonstration of the physical asteroid model being used for the mission’s camera assessment. At ESTEC, the Netherlands.
The team behind ESA’s Reddit ‘Ask Me Anything,” featuring ESA scientists, engineers, and communication officers.

ESA Web Portal

| 5 July 2016

ESA_Portal1The ESA Portal is Europe’s most recognised  space portal. This news-driven site presents European space to the public in an approachable way. In a virtual newsroom, our EJR-Quartz editors and writers work with graphic artists and ESA content owners, spread across multiple locations in a number of countries. We played an integral role in the creation and running of the ESA Portal since its launch in 2000.

 

 

 

 

What we do:

  • ESA Portal sitesWe have developed the content for most of the sites which fall under the ESA Portal umbrella and we continue to maintain these. These include all the ESA Directorate-level sites: Earth Observation, Human Spaceflight, Industry, Launchers, Navigation, Spacecraft Engineering and Technology, Spacecraft Operations, Space Science and Telecommunications.
  • We script and produce videos, such as the weekly ‘Earth from Space’ web-TV programme.earth from space
  • For every launch or similar major event, we provide additional coverage, including a dedicated web ‘special’ and/or blog and social media support.
  • We manage the main ESA social media channels, including Twitter, Flickr, Google+, Facebook and YouTube. We also support ESA astronauts with their social media activities.
  • We support any other writing and editing needs for ESA’s Communications Department, such as the ESA Bulletin, mission brochures and exhibition material.

 

Related links

German Aerospace Center (DLR)

| 4 July 2016

dlrThe DLR Portal serves as a major source of German space news and information. It addresses several different audiences – the general public, media, politicians, the scientific community, and young people. A key function of the Portal is to direct these different audiences to the right place. EJR-Quartz supplies English-language editorial services and social media support for the DLR Portal English language pages.

What we do:

English-language edition of the DLR Magazine.

English-language edition of the DLR Magazine.

  • We translate and edit content for the English-language DLR site, including news articles and highlights.
  • We are also responsible for translating and editing the English edition of the DLR Magazine and write occasional original feature articles.
  • We provide additional services such as promotion, statistical analysis, and development of small animations.
  • We manage the DLR’s English-language social media channels, including X, Facebook, and Instagram.

Related links

DexROV

| 3 July 2016

dexrov1We are the communication and dissemination partner for DexROV, a project to make underwater operations easier and more flexible through the development of cost-effective remotely-operated-vehicles (ROVs).

DexROV (Effective Dexterous ROV Operations in Presence of Communications Latencies) is a project funded under the European Union’s Horizon 2020 Research and Innovation programme. The project will carry out unmanned underwater operations using an enhanced ROV and a vessel equipped with a satellite communication link. This will be connected to a monitoring and control centre, allowing onshore human management using exoskeleton technologies. The results of this project will have a significant impact on the cost and operation of equipment and personnel used for obtaining energy from the ocean, deep-sea mineral extraction, aquaculture and general observation and exploration.

Launching from January 2015, DexROV will be implemented over 3.5 years and will draw on expertise from a consortium of seven partners across six European countries. Our role as consortium member will be to maximise the visibility and impact of the project through cross-media communication and dissemination activities.

 

What we do:

  • We coordinated the design of  DexROV graphics, including logo, website, business cards, etc. as well as commissioned the project’s graphics, animations, and videos.
  • We set up and maintain the DexROV website, writing and publishing the latest news articles, highlights, and event recaps as well as project milestones. We also create the DexROV Newsletter.
  • We manage DexROV social media channels (Twitter and YouTube).

 

Related links

ESA Intranet

| 3 July 2016

intranetEJR-Quartz is responsible for ESA’s Intranet publishing at the corporate level. This large-scale internal communications platform is the gateway to the Agency’s tools, processes and procedures, as well as the trusted source for the latest news.

What we do:

  • Since 2007, we have provided development and editorial support for ESA’s Intranet, actively managing the news and background content.
  • We work closely with a variety of editors, authors and content owners in multiple locations to ensure that high-quality internal news is published regularly across all the Agency’s offices.
  • Our writers create, coordinate and publish engaging content in the fields of Human Resources, Information Technology and Facility Management, as well as behind-the-scenes articles on science and engineering projects.
  • We also provide training and webmaster support.

ESA Science

| 2 July 2016

sci.esa.intUnder a separate contract with ESA, we provide editorial support for the ESA Science specialist portal sci.esa.int. Geared towards members of the scientific community as well as science enthusiasts, we maintain the portal and provide writing and editorial services.

What we do:

  • We manage the website, maintain the publishing schedule, and support the ESA Science editorial board.
  • We manage a pool of freelance science writers to cover specialist topics.
  • We also coordinate the creation of graphics and animations, such as Where is Rosetta Now? and the Comet Tracker. More info on our multimedia and graphics can be found here.

ECMWF Copernicus

| 1 July 2016

ECMWF, based in Reading, UK, is an independent intergovernmental research institute and operational service that provides numerical weather predictions to its Member States. ECMWF has been appointed by the European Commission to implement the Copernicus Climate Change and Atmosphere Monitoring Services, under the EU’s flagship Earth-observation programme Copernicus.

From January 2017, EJR-Quartz is assisting the ECMWF Copernicus Services communication team achieve their goals of reporting scientific information and complex data findings to the wider community of scientists, policy makers, industry, SMEs, and the media. We are collaborating with the Copernicus communication team at ECMWF to help increase the visibility of the Copernicus Services programme and the important research it undertakes.