After six and a half months in space, German Astronaut Alexander Gerst returned to earth. His Soyuz-space capsule hit on Thursday morning as planned in the steppes of Kazakhstan in Central Asia. He was looking forward to his family again, said the 42-Year-old. According to initial medical Tests, he should be arriving in the evening at the airport of Cologne/Bonn. There, relatives and friends were waiting for him – but no big Party. For the first time peace was announced, said Rüdiger Seine, head of the astronauts training at the European space Agency (Esa).
a lot of attention in the network Gersts caused a last Video message before returning, a five-minute “message to my grandchildren”. He had to apologize for his Generation, he says. “At the Moment, it looks as if we, my Generation, you are not to leave the planet just in the best condition.” The human race was to tilt the climate, to clear forests and pollute seas, and to consume the limited resources much too quickly. The earth is a “fragile spaceship” and “I hope that we will get the curve.” No other Video was shared on Wednesday in Germany more frequently on Facebook.
The return flight from the International space station ISS had lasted for more than three hours. Initially, it was helped on Thursday by the Russians Sergey Prokopyev from the capsule, then his US colleague Serena Auñón-Chancellor and, finally, “Astro Alex” – visibly happy, waving and good things. Traditionally, the space riders was at the point of land Southeast of the city of Scheskasgan an Apple served in frosty temperatures of minus ten degrees.
Christmas Gerst can spend in a private circle. “Yes, he’s on holidays, sports and Training for the purpose of regeneration and Rehabilitation must be carried out,” said a spokesman for the European astronauts centre in Cologne, Germany. 27. December it is then. The Mission has not yet ended, the results have to be evaluated, said Gerst after landing.
In the coming days, the 42-Year-old with numerous medical and scientific studies endure. “Until Christmas, some hard days to come on the, Alexander Gerst, again, where we have a very closely timed program,” said His. The Friday begins for the astronauts to 6 p.m. with a “battery of Tests” and one of the first physiotherapy unit in the evening after a 12-hour day at 18 o’clock.
Esa-chief Jan Wörner said in the ARD”morning magazine” that he was very relieved. Gerst could be his son, and he was as head of the European astronauts responsible for it. “It was fantastic to see the look on his face. It’s good for him.“ Great work for science, climate change, and humanity had Gerst made, tweeted Federal Minister for economic Affairs, Peter Altmaier. “A model for all of us!” In addition to photos of hurricanes and the Crew in the Halloween costume had spread “Astro Alex” also a lot of thoughtful and threatening messages via social media.
Gerst is German, the longest space practice
It was already the second Mission of the 42-Year-old on the Outpost of humanity. Gerst meanwhile, the German with the longest space practice: 166 days he has spent in 2014, in All 197 days this year. With 363 days, he broke the previous record set by his colleague Thomas Reiter, a total of 350 days in space.
Gersts second Mission, “Horizons” was on 6. June with the launch to the ISS started. At the beginning of October of baden-württemberg, Künzelsau-born geophysicist took over as the first German command of the ISS. On Tuesday, he handed it over to his Russian colleague Oleg Kononenko.
attention To the cause of the hole in Gersts space capsule.
was worried About the Mission, not a good star seemed at times to stand. In mid-October, the launch of a Russian Soyuz rocket to the ISS a glitch. The two drivers survived the false start thanks to an emergency landing. Two planned field operations Gersts fell off, with each of the experiments there were problems, others were delayed or accounted for. “It was a very intense, but also very successful Mission,” said Volker Schmid, Horizons-to the head of mission of the German center for air and space travel (DLR), a first balance sheet.
a great deal of attention had caused a small hole in Gersts space capsule, on the “Astro Alex” first of all, his Finger held to have, in order to stop the pressure drop in the connected ISS. The leak was sealed, but the cause remained unclear. Only last week, two cosmonauts had inspected it with a special cloth and sealed. Now brought samples should help to clarify the cause – the affected module was disconnected during landing and burned up.
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“Astro Alex” is back Gerst, on earth, Alexander: “The Mission still goes on”
The next manned launch to the ISS, according to Roscosmos for the 1. March 2019 is planned. Whether Gerst, once again, to the space station will return, is uncertain. Experts consider a flight of the Germans to the moon. The USA want to circumnavigate the moon in 2023, with a manned Orion spacecraft, which is currently being built in co-operation with Europe. (dpa)
