The way to the moon station
Scientists and space managers want to build a settlement on the moon. But to do that, they still have a number of problems to solve.
If Matthias Maurer wants to walk on the surface of the moon, all he has to do in future is go to Cologne. Here, the German Aerospace Center (DLR) and the European Space Agency ESA are currently building the largest moon simulator in the world: a 1000 square meter pit that will be filled with artificial moon dust.
Thanks to an ingenious system of pulleys, bricklayers and other scientists will be able to jump around in the hall just as carefree as on the moon. With adjustable lamps, the special lighting conditions should also be able to be recreated. From time to time, the astronauts can even stop off in some form of lodging-an airlocked module the size of a shipping container.
The project offers an "exciting playground" to test the technologies that would be necessary for a real lunar base, says Maurer. Since 2015 he has been the second German in the ESA astronaut corps alongside Alexander Gerst. In addition, Maurer acts as project manager for the multi-million euro facility called LUNA, which is being built in the vicinity of the European Astronaut Center EAC …
You can find a video about the Apollo 11 mission re-enactment here.
