Europe has embarked on the mission to put humans back on the moon with a new moon simulator launched in Germany, French astronaut Thomas Pesquet told AFP.
Pesquet was at the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Cologne on Wednesday to test out LUNA, a facility built to resemble the surface of the moon.
The 46-year-old astronaut, a national icon in France for his missions to the International Space Station (ISS), glowed at the prospect of taking part in a moon mission.
“It would be a dream and the highlight of my career. The moon is a thousand times further away than the ISS,” he said in an interview.
“On board the ISS you feel like you are doing something special. But going to the moon takes the adventure to a whole other level.”
The newly opened facility is designed to train astronauts and test equipment and materials for use during missions to the moon.
International interest in exploring the moon has increased dramatically in recent years.
NASA has launched a program, Artemis, to land astronauts on the moon in 2026, more than five decades after American space explorers last visited the final flight of the Apollo missions in 1972.
Earlier this year, China sent a probe that collected the first samples from the far side of the moon. The country wants to send a manned mission to Earth’s satellite and build a base on the moon’s surface by 2030.
Japan and India plan to send a probe to look for water near the moon’s south pole in 2025.
The European Space Agency (ESA) hopes to collaborate with NASA on future moon missions, Pesquet said.
“It is a key moment for Europe because we are really into lunar exploration. We are already working with NASA in providing equipment and materials for Artemis,” he said.
‘But LUNA is actually the first highly visible sign that we have made plans to return to the moon. We prove this by making long-term investments. This facility will be open to other space agencies, researchers and scientists. , we hope, to private companies.”
– ‘Another kettle of fish’ –
Pesquet described his first test of LUNA as surprising.
He and fellow ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer rehearsed walking on the moon’s surface, wearing special suits that weighed 25 kilograms and carried scientific and communications equipment, he said.
“I was surprised by the penetrating light seen on the moon, especially at the south pole. It is very difficult to judge the topography,” he said, describing how he sank into the thick layer of dust covering the simulated the moon’s surface.
“The moment you leave the trail, figuring out where to step is a whole different matter. It’s also incredibly slow. It’s not like Earth, you’re a lot less coordinated. It reminded me of my spacewalks on the International Space Station.”
Europe’s role in providing the service module for NASA’s Orion capsule, which will carry the Artemis crew members, has given the ESA three places for its astronauts on the program’s first three missions around the moon.
But “NASA told us, ‘To land on the moon, you have to propose something to do on the lunar surface,'” Pesquet said.
“LUNA is not a contractual part of the deal. But it allows us to show that we are serious.”
ber/jhb/yy
