To celebrate the 50th anniversary of European cooperation in space, ESA, the European Space Agency, has designed and created the exhibition "My Planet from Space: Fragility and Beauty".
Through satellite images and videos, visitors can travel to the most beautiful and remote places on Earth.
While these images are beautiful, they dramatically contrast with the reality they represent. They invite us to reflect on the fragility of our planet and the threats posed by climatic changes on a global scale and how satellites can contribute to managing these devastating effects.
Satellites provide us with images of an ever changing Earth: glaciers melting at increasing speeds, sea levels rising, rivers drying and no longer reaching the sea, rainforests threatened by deforestation, growing desertification affecting agriculture and uncontrolled urban sprawl. All of these images are rich with information useful to scientists and researchers to better understand our Planet’s future.
The exhibition will also provide visitors with the opportunity to view Earth as seen from the International Space Station through the eyes of Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano during the mission “Volare” of ASI (Italian Space Agency): the first long-term mission on-board the ISS.
Luca Parmitano is a test pilot , Major in the Italian Air Force and recently nominated Ambassador for the six-month Italian Presidency of the Council of the European Union.
The exhibition is designed to attract the interest of a wide audience, with particular focus on the younger generation, to increase their awareness of a more environmentally sustainable lifestyle, avoid the exploitation of natural resources and recycle materials that would otherwise be considered as waste.