Gaia
ESA · Sun-Earth L2 (retired to solar orbit)
The Milky Way mapper stopped observing in January 2025; the mission now lives in its archive, with Data Release 4 due on 2 December 2026.
At a glance
- Phase
- data processing
- Operator
- ESA
- Destination
- Sun-Earth L2 (retired to solar orbit)
- Next milestone
- Gaia Data Release 4, targeted 2 December 2026
- Last verified
- 2026-08-08
Where it stands
Spacecraft retired; archive programme active.
The mission
Gaia's scientific observations ended on 15 January 2025 after nearly eleven years mapping the galaxy, and ESA passivated the spacecraft into a retirement orbit around the Sun on 27 March 2025. The mission continues on the ground: Data Release 4, targeted for 2 December 2026, is the first built from the full 5.5-year primary survey and spans more than 130 data products, over half of them new. A final legacy catalogue is expected around 2030.
Related
Sources
- Gaia Data Release 4, ESA Cosmos · https://www.cosmos.esa.int/web/gaia/data-release-4
- ESA on the end of spacecraft operations · https://www.esa.int/Enabling_Support/Operations/Farewell_Gaia!_Spacecraft_operations_come_to_an_end