LUNA recreates the Moon’s surface on Earth, located next to ESA’s Astronaut Centre (EAC) in Cologne, Germany.
This collaborative project between the European Space Agency (ESA) and the German Aerospace Center (DLR) serves as a fully integrated training and testing ground, simulating lunar-like conditions here on Earth. It enables researchers to practise manoeuvring in these environments and test new technologies for the success of future missions to the Moon and beyond.
In the LUNA facility, astronauts will soon train for various exploration scenarios, practising work on the lunar surface with instruments, at the lander, and in cooperation with robots.