On January 19, 2015, the European Space Agency (ESA)’s Directorate of Science and Robotic Exploration and the National Space Science Center (NSSC) under the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS), have announced a joint call for a scientific space mission. The joint announcement solicits proposals from the scientific communities in the ESA Member States and in China. It is the first time ever that ESA have issued a joint call in this way with other space science agencies.

To facilitate the interaction between Chinese and European scientists, two workshops were co-organized by ESA and NSSC in Chengdu, China (in February, 2014) and Copenhagen, Denmark (in September, 2014). Except for that, the mission selected as an outcome of the present Joint Call, will follow a collaborative approach through all the essential phases, such as study, definition, implementation, operation, and scientific exploitation. After four-year’s implementation phase, the mission is scheduled to be launched in 2021.

Deadline for the Joint Call is March 16, 2015. For more information, please visit: http://sci.esa.int/cosmic-vision/55262-joint-call-for-a-mission-from-the-chinese-academy-of-sciences-cas-and-the-european-space-agency-esa/