Go there to stay Europe intends to send astronauts to the Moon and has further plans

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Europe provided a key technology for the recent Moon mission and also has its own projects. When German astronauts might take part and what Europe plans for the Moon in the coming years.

Europe played a major role in the recent "Artemis 2" mission and has its own plans for exploring the Moon. During NASA’s Artemis 2 mission, four astronauts flew around the Moon in a figure-eight‑type trajectory and returned to Earth on Saturday.

“We are back in the game,” says Daniel Neuenschwander, Director for Human and Robotic Spaceflight at the European Space Agency (ESA), with reference to human Moon flights. No human had been anywhere near the Moon since 1972.

“The current flight to the Moon would not have been possible without ESA’s propulsion system,” Neuenschwander told the German Press Agency (dpa). ESA supplied the European Service Module (ESM) for the mission. It provided the astronauts with oxygen, water and power, and it supplied the propulsion for the Orion capsule in which they travelled to the Moon.

Plan for a German astronaut on the Moon

European astronauts are expected to take part in future Artemis missions. Contrary to earlier plans, Artemis 3 will not land astronauts on the Moon; that is now slated for Artemis 4 in 2028. ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher recently said that Germany will be first in line when it comes to ESA astronauts for lunar missions.

ESA itself wants to send instruments to the Moon by 2030 with an as‑yet‑unnamed lander called Argonaut. Delivered payloads would then be able to move across the lunar surface, Neuenschwander said. The first flight is planned atop an Ariane 6 rocket. Argonaut is intended to deliver up to 1.5 tonnes of cargo, such as a rover or scientific equipment, to the lunar surface.

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“Our aim is to increase our understanding of the Moon,” Neuenschwander said. “We want to go to the South Pole.” There, resources are to be explored, and the sunlight is also optimal for power generation.

“We want to go there to stay,” Neuenschwander added. “The long‑term goal is a European research station with astronauts. The plan for getting there is: show by 2030 that we can do it; from 2031 we will build up capacities and, before 2040, establish a permanent European presence on the Moon.” The US remain an important partner. “We need the US for crewed transport to the Moon.”

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“To remain on the Moon, we must continue to work on life‑support systems,” the space expert said. “How can water be extracted from the Moon, how can oxygen be generated, how can the crew be protected from radiation? How can the lunar night be survived, which lasts 14 Earth days?” Insights into radiation protection will also be useful for any future missions to Mars.

Lunar projects offer significant scientific benefits, Neuenschwander said: “We also gain a better understanding of Earth and the Moon’s influence on climate. It is also about resources, once we are there.” In addition, spaceflight drives technological innovation that can be used in other fields, for example robots that assist in disaster response.