Bengaluru | The ISRO on Saturday announced that it has signed an agreement with the European Space Agency (ESA) to collaborate on joint calibration, validation activities and scientific studies for earth observation missions.

In a statement, the Bengaluru-headquartered space agency said, the agreement titled "ESA–ISRO Arrangement concerning Joint Calibration and Validation Activities and Scientific Studies for Earth Observation Missions" was signed virtually on March 4 by ISRO Scientific Secretary M Ganesh Pillai and ESA Director for Earth Observation, Simonetta Cheli.

The arrangement strengthens their long-standing cooperation that began in 1978 and was renewed in 2002.

Cheli highlighted the importance of the collaboration in the context of upcoming Earth observation missions, particularly ESA's FLEX (Fluorescence Explorer) mission aimed at improving understanding of vegetation biology.

Pillai noted that the partnership between the two agencies spans several areas including Earth observation, navigation, ground station support and human spaceflight cooperation.

He also referred to ESA's support for India's space missions such as Chandrayaan and Aditya-L1, as well as collaboration through ISRO's deep space antenna facilities.

The agreement is expected to support future joint scientific studies and calibration campaigns for upcoming Earth observation missions, ISRO added.