Public presentation of M-Matisse, Plasma Observatory and THESEUS

candidate missions for the M7 opportunity in ESA's Science Programme

 

A meeting to be at ESA HQ on Wednesday 22 April 2026, from 09:00-17:30 CEST

 

Page updates:

29 January : Initial announcement.
05 February: Registration open.
13 March: Modified registration deadline.
24 March: Registration closed due to full subscription.
15 April: Webex link to attend online added. 

 

 

Context

In November 2022, ESA selected five candidate missions for study for the 7th Medium-class mission (M7) launch opportunity of ESA's Science Programme. Of these, three missions, M-MATISSE, Plasma Observatory and THESEUS, are completing the study phase and are now in competition to be selected as the next mission in the ESA Science Programme. As part of the mission selection, the three teams have been invited to make a public presentation, describing their respective missions and the expected science return, and thereafter answering questions from the audience. Details of each mission can be found here.

The public presentation will be held at ESA HQ on 22 April, 2026. People wishing to attend are requested to register using the link below.


Programme 

09:00-09:40  Arrival and badge collection (photo ID required)  
10:00-10:15  Welcome and opening remarks from ESA  
10:15-11:15  Presentation of the M-MATISSE mission, by M-MATISSE representatives,
 followed by short period (15 minutes) for Q&A		  
11:15-11:45  Coffee Break  
11:45-12:45  Presentation of the Plasma Observatory mission, by Plasma Observatory representatives,
 followed by short period (15 minutes) for Q&A 		  
12:45-14:30  Lunch Break(*)  
14:30-15:30  Presentation of the THESEUS mission, by THESEUS representatives,
 followed by short period (15 minutes) for Q&A 		  
15:30 - 16:00  Coffee Break  
16:00 - 16:45  Mission Selection Review summary presentation by ESA  
16:45 - 17:30

 Question and Answer session

  
(All times in CEST)  

(*) Lunch is not catered for. Due to the limited capacity of the ESA HQ canteen, participants will have to go to an outside venue for lunch

Registration

Individuals wishing to join the event must register. 

Registration now closed due to full subscription.

 

Webex Link for attendance online

Live stream is via this link
 

 

 

Contact

Paul McNamara
Astronomy and Astrophysics Coordinator 
Science Directorate
European Space Agency
Email: Paul.McNamaraesa.int

 

Last updated: 15 April 2026