Esa astronaut Matthias Maurer is the fourth German to get out into the open cosmos. In addition to the danger, the work, which lasts several hours, is very exhausting, emphasizes his former boss.
Darmstadt – Europe’s former head of space travel Jan Wörner has described the forthcoming external mission of ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer as a highlight of the German astronaut’s mission.
The more than six-hour maintenance work outside the ISS space station this Wednesday is no easy task and, in addition to the danger, is very exhausting, Wörner told the German Press Agency. “The first so-called EVAs were conducted during the Cold War to demonstrate efficiency. The very first mission by Alexei Leonov in 1965 almost ended in disaster as he struggled to get back into the capsule.”
“Neither prestige nor adventure”
Today, such missions would have a factual sense. “This is neither prestige nor adventure. It is always about special tasks that have to be performed outside of the ISS and cannot be performed by the robotic arm,” explained Wörner. Maurer is involved in several work on the temperature control of the ISS, the replacement of a camera and work on the European module Columbus.
With regard to the Ukraine conflict, the current President of the German Academy of Science and Engineering said it was good that the ISS peacefully united astronauts from different countries even in difficult political times. “On board are Russians, Americans and one European: Matthias Maurer from Saarland. Space travel has bridged conflicts on earth in the past – the ISS is a symbol of this.” From 2015 to February 2021, Wörner headed the European space agency ESA in Paris.
Maurer left for the ISS on November 11 with three colleagues from the US space agency Nasa. He is the twelfth German in space and the fourth on the outpost of humanity. Together with his US colleague Raja Chari, he takes on the field mission around 400 kilometers above the earth. Maurer is scheduled to return to Earth at the end of April. dpa
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