Mission's specificities
Asclepios II, our second analogue mission, will be set in a Lunar South Pole environement. A crew of six international analogue astronauts will be placed in isolation while they carry out experiments and EVAs to explore the challenges in the search for water. The mission will take place at Sasso San Gottardo, a Swiss world war eara fortress in the Airolo municipality of Switzerland.
Location : Gotthard Mountain fortress
The special exhibition hall “Sasso San Gottardo” is found within the gigantic caverns of the previous Gotthard post profound interior of the mountain. The fortification on the Gotthard Pass was one of the biggest underground resistance establishments in Switzerland and was still worked as a top-secret military office until 2001.
Nowadays, guests can investigate broad burrows and encounter a breath of history. The underground funicular “Metro del Sasso” takes you to the noteworthy fortification, where gunrooms, ammo magazines, troop convenience, and command offices are covered up absent. One of the puzzling entries leads to an exit in a shake confront – and to the seeing stage, which offers an excellent display.
Mentors
Pr. Claude Nicollier
Claude Nicollier is a former ESA astronaut and is currently a professor at EPFL. He is a member of the Swiss Space Center and participated in the astronaut selection process at ESA. Claude is the mentor of the Asclepios astronaut team.
Ingo Blechschmidt
Dr. Ingo Blechschmidt is Head of the Nagra’s Grimsel Test Site (GTS), the underground laboratory where our lunar base for Asclepios I is built. He is a geologist and beside his responsibility for the GTS, he represents Nagra in international organizations such as the IAEA network for underground research facilities (URF) for the management of radioactive waste in deep geological repositories.
Ingo and his team are helping us enormously with the construction and layout of our lunar base, guiding us in the technical and safety aspects of our base, and will be there in case of any concerns during the mission.
Alban Michon
A real fan of the polar regions and deep-sea diving, Alban Michon is a French adventurer and explorer who has gone on some exceptional expeditions. In 2012, he travelled 1,000km in a sea kayak along the Greenland coast, and went diving under the icebergs there. He is the mentor for the training of our future astronauts.
Thibaut Gaillard
Thibaut Gaillard is an emergency physician and occupational physician specializing in aerospace medicine. He worked several years for the German Aerospace Center and the European Astronaut Center in Cologne. Back in Switzerland, he divides his activity between a consultation specializing in aptitude medicine and an activity in prehospital emergency medicine. Thibaut Gaillard is the mentor of the biomedical team of Ascelpios missions.
Romain Charles
Romain Charles is a MEDES engineer working at the French Space center in Toulouse. With « Spaceship FR », he helps CNES prepare the future of Space Exploration. Between 2010 and 2011, he participated in Mars500, a mission aiming at simulating on earth a trip to Mars back and fourth, meaning 520 days (for now the longest analog mission ever accomplished). Until 2020, he has used his experience to profit the astronauts and their families in their daily life throughout their space missions from the astronaut training center in Cologne (EAC).
Asclepios II Team
Meet Atlas, our second astronaut crew. If you want to know more about them, click here !
Sponsors
The San Gottardo pass is one of the most important Alpine passes, located at 2106 m a.s.l. This Alpine pass marks the border between the Canton of Ticino and the Canton of Uri. The Sasso San Gottardo Foundation, based in Airolo (Ticino), is a private non-profit organization. Its purpose is the long-term preservation of the Sasso San Gottardo Museum in the historic Sasso San Gottardo, considered a valuable historical and cultural asset. The Sasso San Gottardo will provide the location for the analog base of the next Asclepios II mission.
eSpace at EPFL provides high-standard education, leading space technology development and coordination of multi-disciplinary learning projects. One of their goals is to promote their achievements and help transferring them to the industry and the public domain or to encourage entrepreneurship.
Verbier is an alpine village in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. It is a good access point for the 4 Vallées ski area. From the trails on the Mont Fort glacier you can admire the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc. Mount Gelé is known for its slopes, on which off-piste skiing is practiced.
Daff is a chilean company that develops and manufactures food solutions to improve the consumption experience of our customers, especially on occasions where the handling and refrigeration of food is a problem. Daff is there to provide a solution with a high technical and gastronomic level. Daff’s lyophilized food will be consumed by the analog astronauts during the Asclepios II mission.
Verbier is an alpine village in the canton of Valais, Switzerland. It is a good access point for the 4 Vallées ski area. From the trails on the Mont Fort glacier you can admire the Matterhorn and Mont Blanc. Mount Gelé is known for its slopes, on which off-piste skiing is practiced.
Daff is a chilean company that develops and manufactures food solutions to improve the consumption experience of our customers, especially on occasions where the handling and refrigeration of food is a problem. Daff is there to provide a solution with a high technical and gastronomic level. Daff’s lyophilized food will be consumed by the analog astronauts during the Asclepios II mission.
This school is one of the leading European centers for education and research in the field of information technology. The technological revolution has changed people’s lives in countless ways over the past half century. This is why this school carries out research that pushes the boundaries of knowledge, promotes the commercial use of the research carried out and encourages the entrepreneurial spirit of teachers and students.
(Asclepios I: EPFL’s IC School is one of the main European centers for education and research in the field of Information Technology.)
The Columbia Sportswear Company is an American company that manufactures and distributes outerwear, sportswear, and footwear, as well as headgear, camping equipment, ski apparel, and outerwear accessories. It was founded in 1938 by Paul Lamfrom, the father of Gert Boyle. The company is headquartered in Cedar Mill, an unincorporated area in Washington County, Oregon, in the Portland metropolitan area near Beaverton. Columbia’s rapid sales growth was fueled by its jackets, which featured breathable waterproof fabric and interchangeable shells and liners.
Nagra is a Swiss cooperative company founded by the Swiss producers of radioactive waste. It was established under Swiss law, which stipulates that the producers of nuclear waste must also ensure its safe and sustainable disposal. It has been chosen to use geological disposal and as such, it operates research sites to assess the implications of this solution.
The University of Concepción is a university in Chile, whose central campus is located in the central area of the city of Concepción, is one of the three main academic institutions of Chile and its international prestige places it among the most important in South America. The University of Concepción was founded in 1919 and is the third oldest university in the country
The Forum EPFL is one of Europe’s largest recruitment fairs: more than 190 Companies and 85 startups attend each year to meet EPFL’s bachelor students, graduates, and PhD students. For the past 38 editions and continuing today, Forum EPFL’s committee has ceaselessly strived to facilitate insertion for members of the EPFL community in all work sectors.
The Biobío Region is one of Chile’s sixteen regions. With a population of 1.5 million, thus being the third most populated region in Chile, it is divided into three provinces: Arauco, Biobío and Concepción. The latter contains its capital and largest city, Concepción, a major city and metro area in the country. Los Ángeles, capital of the Biobío Province, is another important city in the region.
icebreaker® provides natural alternatives to synthetic-based clothing to create a healthier, more sustainable future for our species and the planet. The company is part of the VF Corporation, one of the world’s largest apparel, footwear and accessories companies that connects people to the lifestyles, activities and experiences they love most through a family of iconic outdoor, activity and workwear brands, including The North and Napapijri®.
Solenix is an international company providing engineering and consulting services in the space market. On the consultancy side, Solenix covers a wide range of domains starting from spacecraft operations services, general engineering and management support, to research and development of advanced technologies and concepts.
The School of Basic Sciences is responsible for teaching and researching in chemistry, mathematics, physics and related domains. A growing emphasis has been developing in fields at the interface between their traditional disciplines.
Céline Renaud, specialist in public speaking, has given more than 3000 conferences/shows in this domain. While mastering five languages she is a self-entrepreneur combining motivation, art, innovation and sustainability which made her win numerous awards such as one of the 20 women of influence in Switzerland. Her passion for music, nature and people enable her to construct rich courses in public speaking for those who require it. Céline Renaud provides communication training for the analog astronauts crew.
Specialised in the distribution of multi-brand outdoor meals, Lyophilise & Co is the European leader in the online resale of freeze-dried meals. Our catalogue contains more than 1700 food references (personalised rations and food kits, freeze-dried and canned meals, sports nutrition) and equipment for “Eating well in all circumstances”. Based in Lorient, France, in the heart of the Pôle Course au Large, our company has developed solid expertise in the field of food autonomy.
HE Space is a leading contracting company specialised in providing managed services and human resources to the space sector. The company employs space experts in the fields of engineering, science, operations, software development and administration. Employees contribute towards every major European space programme. Notable players like ESA, ArianeGroup, Airbus Defence and Space, EUMETSAT, DLR and many more have drawn on their expertise for nearly 40 years.
Les Petits Montagnards is a company for the rental of outdoor products. It is a Savoyard society for which children and adults should always live outdoors, play, discover nature, and experience great adventures. An #ecoresponsible solution to consume differently.
Science Adventure develops integrated software and hardware systems particularly based on the study of artificial intelligence (AI) technologies. The systems are applied in aerospace and health-care or boundary sectors such as Real Estate or Social Science. In particular, in the aerospace sector SciAdv provides aircraft design services and carries out commercial evaluations of airplanes and helicopters; SciAdv performs services based on the use of drones; SciAdv also provides services based on the analysis of EO images from satellites.
The Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences SATW is the most important network of experts for engineering sciences in Switzerland and is in contact with the highest Swiss bodies for science, politics and industry. The network is comprised of elected individual members, member organisations and experts.
A Swiss company focused on innovation and quality, Logitech designs products and experiences that have an everyday place in people’s lives. Founded in 1981 in Lausanne, Switzerland, and quickly expanding to the Silicon Valley, Logitech started connecting people through innovative computer peripherals and many industry firsts, including the infrared cordless mouse, the thumb-operated trackball, the laser mouse, and more.
NEUROLITE represents, supports and distributes high-quality medical systems and products used mainly in Neurology and associated fields: ultrasound, EEG, EMG, evoked potentials (EP), polysomnography (PSG) and non-invasive brain stimulation (TMS, tCS). (https://neurolite.ch/en)
The Solexperts Group is involved in renowned projects worldwide with geotechnical and hydrogeological instrumentation and field tests. The projects include tunnelling, hydraulic engineering, special civil engineering, wind energy plants and research projects for nuclear waste disposal as well as for geothermal energy and the sequestration of CO2.
Andermatt is located at the entrance of the beautiful Ursern valley. The inhabitants of the valley have always been particularly exposed to the changing times. A significant path has been covered from the former times of mule mules to the probably unique tourism project planned today. We are convinced that the people of the Urschner will also master this change with their usual flexibility.
GEMAR is a company that provides services to its Clients based on solid technical knowledge in the management of purchase orders and equipment, especially in the area of quality management, activation, professional support services in the supply chain and engineering area. Efficiently complying with the safety and environmental provisions required by our Clients.
LYO FOOD is proud to cultivate some of the fruits and herbs on their own fields. Other fruits and herbs as well as vegetables come from farmers known to them personally. They are carefully verified to ensure that their products meet the highest quality standards. They are chosen from world famous athletes and explorers to fuel their adventures all over the globe.
Organizations
Companies
Mission outcome
This section will be filled after the completion of the mission and the analysis of the results. As of now, you can download the current brochure.
