Woerner said it is clear nobody is talking about flying directly to Mars within the next five to ten years. Woerner envisages several nations, economic blocs and space exploration groups collaborating in the Moon Village project, including the European Space Agency (ESA), the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA), Roscosmos State Corporation for Space Activities (Роскосмос), the China National Space Administration (CNSA or 国家航天局), Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA – 国立研究開発法人宇宙航空研究開発機構), and the Canadian Space Agency (CSA).Įxperts globally could contribute knowledge, expertise, technology, and even manpower (spacemen and women) for preparations for the Mars mission.

As of today, I see the Moon Village as the ideal successor of the International Space Station for (space) exploration.” “I looked into the requirements I see for a project after ISS. He also provided an overview of ESA’s achievements in 2015 and the opportunities ahead in 2016. Jan Woerner explaining his Moon Village idea during a press conference at ESA headquarters in Paris. Johann-Dietrich ‘Jan’ Wörner, 61, a German civil engineer, university professor and former president of Technische Universität Darmstadt, succeeded Jean-Jacques Dordain as Director General of the European Space Agency on 1st July, 2015. On the far side of the Moon, looking into space is particularly interesting, Prof. Material on the Moon would be used, for example, to build a large observatory to look into space. He would like the International Space Station, which will be shut down in 2024, to be succeeded by a Moon Village, which would be constructed by robots and 3D printers using moon dust and rocks as raw materials. Warner himself who described his idea as ‘crazy’. A crazy Moon Village project has been announced by European Space Ageny boss Jan Woerner.

European space agency moon village