ESA officially appoints Marco Sieber from Bern as an astronaut
Published: Monday, Apr 22nd 2024, 10:40
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Switzerland has another fully-fledged astronaut. Marco Sieber from Bern officially joined the astronaut corps of the European Space Agency (ESA) on Monday after completing basic astronaut training in Cologne (Germany).
"This is a historic moment for European space travel," said ESA Director General Josef Aschbacher Sieber at the certification ceremony for the new astronauts. Sieber is only the second astronaut Switzerland has ever had, after Claudie Nicollier.
The 35-year-old Sieber received his astronaut diploma at the end of a one-year basic astronaut training course at the ESA Astronaut Center in Cologne. The 35-year-old Sieber from Kirchberg BE was selected from 22,500 applicants for the astronaut training course.
Between 2026 and 2030, the new European astronauts will fly on missions to the International Space Station to carry out scientific experiments, it was announced at the ceremony.
©Keystone/SDA
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