What it does
ESA Multimedia covers space missions, Earth observation, astronauts, technology and agency activities. Public image pages supply captions and licence credits, while the professional photolibrary groups high-resolution material into mission and topic albums.
An image’s Details area identifies its credit and licence; Related links connect it with the mission or subject. The professional photolibrary requires registration. After login, a download button appears beside each image, with full-resolution JPG files and TIFF versions available on request where they exist.
Eligible ESA material is free for educational, editorial and informational use with the stated credit. Commercial promotion needs separate written approval, including the proposed layout and copy. Third-party images can require the named owner’s permission, and items carrying CC BY-SA 3.0 IGO follow that licence. The same terms page addresses video use and on-screen or end credits.
Strengths
- Mission and topic albums organize the professional image library.
- Professional downloads have a stated full-resolution JPG route.
- The usage guidance explicitly covers educational, editorial and informational projects.
Watch out for
- Commercial promotion requires separate approval.
- ESA cannot grant permission for imagery owned by another rights holder.
Best for
- Science editors, educators and documentary producers sourcing space imagery
Sources
- ESA: Images (Oct 27, 2026)
- ESA: Help with using ESA image archives (Oct 27, 2026)
- ESA: First post-flight rehabilitation session (Oct 27, 2026)
- ESA: Terms and conditions of use of images and videos (Oct 27, 2026)