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Cologne (dpa) - "Cosmic Kiss", cosmic kiss, is the name of the space mission of the German astronaut Matthias Maurer.
The 50-year-old is scheduled to leave for the ISS space station in autumn 2021.
The European space agency ESA announced on Monday in Cologne that the unusual name was “a declaration of love for the cosmos”.
The space station is, as it were, the link between the inhabitants of the earth and the universe.
Alexander Gerst's two space missions had more conventional names: “Blue Dot” and “Horizons” (horizons).
According to ESA, Maurer's trip was special for two reasons: On the one hand, he had to prepare for his flight under the conditions of the corona pandemic.
On the other hand, he will be the first German to fly to the ISS in a space capsule from a private US provider.
The native of Saarland will live and work on the International Space Station for six months.
Information on Maurer's flight