27/03/2025 (Agence Europe) – On Thursday 27 March, the European Space Agency (ESA) decommissioned its Gaia spacecraft and placed it in a ‘retirement orbit’ around the Sun. The data collected by Gaia on the cosmos will continue to be exploited. Gaia, launched in 2013, had an initial lifespan of five years. “Gaia has transformed our understanding of the cosmos by accurately mapping the positions, distances, motions and properties of nearly two billion stars and other celestial objects” ESA said in a press release. The publication of new data is scheduled for 2026 and the publication of the definitive Gaia catalogues for the end of 2030 at the earliest. (CG)