Europe has chosen their next Space Chief, Johan-Dietrich Worner. Last month in Colorado Springs, Colorado, at the Space Foundations National Space Symposium, a gathering of global commercial, civil, military and space experts, Worner announced the intention to support an international space colony on the dark side of the moon. The moon colony would ostensibly replace the International Space Station (ISS) which will be destroyed in a fiery descent into the Earth’s atmosphere in 2025.
The Space Foundation event has become an opportunity to get up to speed on what’s happening in all sectors of the global space industry and was attended by over 9,000 people this year.
In his remarks, Worner, whose term will begin on July 1, 2015, said, “it seems to be appropriate to propose a permanent moon station as the successor of ISS. This station should be international, meaning that the different actors can contribute with their respective competencies and interests.”
Worner is currently chairman of the executive board of Deutsches Zentrum fur Luft und Raumfaht e.V, or the DLR, the German Space Agency.
Building a Base on the Dark Side of the Moon
Worner’s rationale for building the new space colony on the dark side of the moon is that it does not have direct exposure to interference from earth broadcasts and would allow the installation of radio telescopes to survey the universe like never before.
References and related content:
- 31st Space Symposium | Space Foundation
- Europe’s Next Space Chief Wants To Build A Colony On The Far Side Of The Moon
