  The Extreme-ultraviolet Stellar Characterization for Atmospheric Physics and
Evolution (ESCAPE) mission is an astrophysics Small Explorer employing
ultraviolet spectroscopy (EUV: 80 - 825 \AA\ and FUV: 1280 - 1650 \AA) to
explore the high-energy radiation environment in the habitable zones around
nearby stars. ESCAPE provides the first comprehensive study of the stellar EUV
and coronal mass ejection environments which directly impact the habitability
of rocky exoplanets. In a 20 month science mission, ESCAPE will provide the
essential stellar characterization to identify exoplanetary systems most
conducive to habitability and provide a roadmap for NASA's future life-finder
missions. ESCAPE accomplishes this goal with roughly two-order-of-magnitude
gains in EUV efficiency over previous missions. ESCAPE employs a grazing
incidence telescope that feeds an EUV and FUV spectrograph. The ESCAPE science
instrument builds on previous ultraviolet and X-ray instrumentation, grazing
incidence optical systems, and photon-counting ultraviolet detectors used on
NASA astrophysics, heliophysics, and planetary science missions. The ESCAPE
spacecraft bus is the versatile and high-heritage Ball Aerospace BCP Small
spacecraft. Data archives will be housed at the Mikulski Archive for Space
Telescopes (MAST).
