ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst using a flare during winter survival training near Star City, Russia, on 23 January 2013.
Survival training is an important part of all Soyuz mission training. There is always the possibility that a Soyuz spacecraft could land in a remote, cold area. All astronauts have to learn to survive in harsh climates while waiting for rescue.
Alexander Gerst is flight engineer for Expedition 40/41, which will be launched to the Station in May 2014 on a long-duration mission to run science experiments and maintain humankind’s space base.