UK sinks to fifth in ESA funding league behind Spain

Nearly ten years after Brit astronaut Tim Peake visited the International Space Station (ISS), the UK has slipped behind Spain in European Space Agency funding rankings.

At the latest ESA Ministerial meeting, where contributions and projects are discussed, ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher said it had secured €22.1 billion (£19.41 billion/ $25.69 billion) in commitments, close to the €22.25 billion target. The slight shortfall was due to substantial oversubscriptions in some areas and undersubscriptions in others.

However, the UK's contribution fell from €1.876 billion (11.24 percent of the budget) in 2022 to €1.706 billion (7.78 percent). Spain more than doubled its commitment, joining Germany, France, and Italy as top contributors. Germany led with €5.067 billion, up from €3.476 billion.

The Space Transportation sector won big in the latest budget, attracting €4.439 billion against a proposed €3.895 billion ...