The core network comprises seven stations in seven countries: Kourou (French Guiana), Cebreros (Spain), Redu (Belgium), Santa Maria (Portugal), Kiruna (Sweden), Malargüe (Argentina) and New Norcia (Australia).

Operators are on duty at ESOC 24 hours/day, year round, to conduct tracking passes,[6] uploading telecommands and downloading telemetry and data.

[13] The 90-person ESOC facility was, as it is today, located on the west side of Darmstadt; it employed the staff and resources previously allocated to the European Space Data Centre (ESDAC), which had been established in 1963 to conduct orbit calculations.

[13] These were augmented by mission control staff transferred from ESTEC to operate satellites and manage the ESTRACK tracking station network.

[13] By July 2012, ESOC had operated over 56 missions[16] spanning science, Earth observation, orbiting observatories, meteorology and space physics.