It was a great event today at 1 Great George Street, London where the European Space Agency – ESA and the UK Space Agency set out their roadmap and visions for human exploration of space. The magnitude of the venue was not lost on the presenters or attendees, home of the Institute of Civil Engineering, past presidents including Thomas Telford, Lord Armstrong and George Stephenson (note the Northern connections;)) the Institute was a key part in major infrastructure which shaped the world we live in now from the Panama canal to Brunel’s Thames tunnel. Today the European Space Agency – ESA and the UK Space Agency spelled out their roadmap to LEO, Lunar and Martian exploration and the massive scientific, engineering and logistical obstacles which lie ahead.