Scientists have built a life-like replica of the Moon’s surface—right here on Earth!
This new training facility, called LUNA, is located in Cologne, Germany, next to the European Space Agency’s Astronaut Centre. The goal is to help astronauts prepare for future Moon missions without having to leave the planet.
The LUNA project is a collaboration between the ESA and the German Aerospace Centre. The 700-square-metre area, roughly the size of three tennis courts, is made of simulated lunar dust and rocks, carefully designed to mimic the Moon’s surface as closely as possible.
LUNA offers special features that make it a one-of-a-kind facility. The floor can be frozen up to three meters deep, helping astronauts practice drilling for water ice—something that could be crucial for long-term missions on the Moon. Adjustable lighting recreates the Moon’s day-night cycle, and an artificial sun will be added soon to simulate shifting shadows. There’s also a harness system that lets astronauts experience the Moon’s lower gravity, making their movements feel lighter and bouncier.
ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer explained that LUNA is unique because no other facility, not even NASA’s, includes so many realistic training elements. Scientists hope that mastering these Moon-like conditions will give European astronauts an edge as they aim to join NASA’s Artemis program, which plans to send humans back to the Moon in the next few years.
very interesting
I loved reading it because, I never knew that maybe chocolate might be gone in the future!
save the chocolate…
I enjoyed this reading because
it show what climate changes does!!
they might have to move most chocolate into a colder place, since the climate clock is getting low
so temperature might get higher.
i love chocolate
I’m allergic to dairy, but this makes me sad for my best friends all around NZ (don’t think it’s weird because I actually do). And my chocolate loving cousin, her name is Dana (I’m from South Korea and she told me how to spell her name in Korean but its not pronounced like Dana).
I know that there are chocolate lovers around the world so, poor them or if you like chocolate poor you (even though I’m allergic to dairy, or to make it easy dairy products: cheese, milk, butter etc).