Science & Exploration 23/04/2026 1809 views 25 likes The European-Chinese Smile mission is due to launch on Tuesday 19 May 2026, at 05:52 CEST / 04:52 BST / 00:52 local time on a European Vega-C rocket. The initial launch date was postponed as a precautionary measure, after a technical issue was identified on the production line of a Vega-C subsystem component. Both Smile and the Vega-C that will take it to space remain stable and safe. Following the completion of careful investigations into the issue, all partners have agreed on 19 May as the new launch date. Smile is a collaboration between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the Chinese Academy of Sciences (CAS). It will reveal how Earth responds to the streams of particles and bursts of radiation from the Sun, using an X-ray camera to make the first X-ray observations of Earth’s magnetic field, and an ultraviolet camera to watch the northern lights non-stop for 45 hours at a time.…