Space travel - Astronaut Maurer: Moon flights are an "opportunity for our generation"
German astronaut Matthias Maurer is still hoping for a flight to the moon on one of the US-led "Artemis" missions. "These moon flights are our generation's chance. I would be delighted and will do everything I can to be ready," the astronaut from the European Space Agency (Esa) told the German Press Agency.
However, it is not yet clear whether there will be a European visit to the moon any time soon. An Esa astronaut is not currently scheduled to fly on the "Artemis 2" mission planned for the end of 2024, nor on the "Artemis 3" launch planned for 2025, but only on "Artemis 4" and "Artemis 5", as Esa Director General Josef Aschbacher recently said. And it is still unclear whether she or he will be one of the two of the four space travelers on a mission who will not only remain in lunar orbit, but also enter the Earth's companion.
"If I get close to the moon, that's the right direction," said Maurer. "Hopping around on it and exploring it scientifically would of course be the absolute jackpot." He is eagerly waiting to see if it works. "Everyone who has this job is nervous," said the 53-year-old from Saarland. "Everyone is dragging their feet somewhere."
If someone else from the Esa squad flies with him, he can help with the mission on the ground. "We are all team players. If I contribute to other Europeans flying to the moon, I've also done something," said Maurer. "But being there myself would of course be one step better."
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Source: www.stern.de
