:format(jpeg):focal(1037x509:1047x499)/cloudfront-us-east-1.images.arcpublishing.com/gfrmedia/XALNZ6BJSNFQXGMXYXBBDIWQN4.jpg "“Space exploration is incredibly expensive but important”: says astronaut Frank Rubio")
Washington – In 2023, Frank Rubio became the American astronaut with the most time spent in space and he spent 371 days in space. International Space Station They allow him to underline the need for this type of work: “Space exploration is incredibly expensive, but important”He said this Tuesday.
Surrounded by his comrades who were part of Expedition 69 – also Americans Stephen Bowen and Woody Hoburg and Emirati Sultan Alniadi– Rubio agreed from headquarters US Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) In Washington, space represents a national and individual sacrifice.
“But it's important because of the technology and science we work with.”The astronaut, 48 years old and of Salvadoran descent, said in an interview with EFE.
Its mission ended in September last year, according to the US space agency, giving researchers the opportunity to monitor the effects of long-duration space flights on humans in anticipation of future missions to space. Luna.
NASA has postponed the mission to send people to 2025 Artemis II will fly over the satellite, and Artemis III will send astronauts there in September 2026.
“The first challenge is getting back to the moon. Distances are a little difficult to understand. The station is 250 miles away, the moon 250,000 and of course, Marte, incredibly more. “It is important to first practice the steps we are going to use to get to Mars and beyond,” says the astronaut.
He emphasized that there is no place for politics on the ISS. “We're doing an incredibly difficult job, and it's a bit of a risk. We're all doing a great job of staying focused on the job, not arguing about politics.”
For this reason, he and his colleagues have stressed whether the future US president will be Democrat Joe Biden or Republican after next November's election. Donald TrumpIt must be remembered that the goals of space exploration transcend national interests and must be protected.
1 / 9 | Photos | The moment three astronauts return to Earth after spending more than a year in space. A NASA astronaut and two cosmonauts from the Russian agency Roscosmos have disembarked from a Russian-made Soyuz capsule to land in a remote part of Kazakhstan.
– Bill Ingalls
“The agency represents everyone. We do it not only for the benefit of our country but also for the benefit of humanity. (…) Whoever the president is, I hope they will continue to support our work,” Rubio insisted on being one of the astronauts of the Artemis program, but it is not yet known if he will be selected to go to the moon.
For his partner Bowen, space exploration knows no bounds. “If we had decided to go to Mars 30 years ago, I believe we would already be there, but it requires political will, commitment, and it would be cheaper to try now than that,” he explained to EFE.
Advances that allow space exploration, he says, have an influence that reaches Earth from space, though not just in the space industry.
“The station blocks have to be assembled. It's an engineering feat and it's part of the study. What we learn affects how things are manufactured around the world. That aspect of the study, those little things, are forever influential.”He concluded.
