Federal Minister of Economics Altmaier visits RM
On 20 August 2018, Federal Minister of Economics and Energy Peter Altmaier visited the German Aerospace Center (DLR) in Oberpfaffenhofen. The Minister had the rare opportunity to speak live with German ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst on the International Space Station ISS.
DLR CEO Ehrenfreund and DLR Executive Board members Hansjörg Dittus and Walther Pelzer received the Minister at the DLR site with the largest number of employees. The visit was accompanied by the Federal Government Coordinator for German Aerospace, MdB Thomas Jarzombek, and ESA Director General Johann Dietrich Wörner.
Federal Economics Minister Altmaier was impressed by the DLR institutes in Oberpfaffenhofen: "With DLR, Germany has a research facility of the highest international standard. What can be seen here is absolute high technology, which is trend-setting for Germany as a location for innovation and business. At the same time, space research is making a direct contribution to improving life on Earth - from medical applications to disaster relief."
"The benefit of astronautical space travel also lies in the knowledge we gain from experiments in weightlessness. New processes in materials science, a better understanding of the processes in the human body, new technologies in robotics," explains Pascale Ehrenfreund, Chairman of the Executive Board of DLR, "By switching off gravity, we can open doors to new horizons that would remain closed to us on earth.
Cutting-edge research at the location
At the Robotics and Mechatronics Centre (RMC), the delegation familiarised itself with the research activities of the DLR Institute of Robotics and Mechatronics and the DLR Institute of Systems Dynamics and Control Technology. The RMC occupies a leading position worldwide in the field of robotics and has an interdisciplinary structure. The Federal Minister of Economics was particularly interested in the latest developments in medical and industrial robotics as well as in robotic electromobility.
The delegation then visited the Earth Observation Center (EOC), Germany's leading competence center for Earth observation. Federal Minister Altmaier informed himself about DLR's comprehensive scientific and technical capacities in the field of environmental and climate research. The focus of attention was on environmental observation with satellite data, discussions on observing the atmospheric ozone layer, the analysis of data from the DLR satellites TerraSAR-X and TanDEM-X, the spread of aquacultures and the impact of the dry summer in Germany.
In future, the Tandem-L mission proposal could also strengthen Germany's leading global position in climate and environmental research. Thanks to innovative radar technologies, two satellites could provide an up-to-date image of the Earth's entire landmass every eight days, continuously measuring seven essential climate variables simultaneously, so that dynamic environmental processes can be seen in a quality and resolution never before achieved. The mission concept was developed at the DLR Institute for Radio Frequency Technology and Radar Systems.
The site tour then led to the German Space Operations Centre (GSOC). Using exhibits and models, the Minister was given an overview of the unmanned and manned missions supported and operated by DLR space operations - from the German radar satellite mission TerraSAR-X to the mission horizons of the German ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst. In addition, the DLR Institute of Communication and Navigation presented its latest developments for the civil European satellite navigation system Galileo. Since its successful launch on 25 July, the Galileo fleet has comprised 26 satellites, providing complete global coverage with navigation signals.
Inflight call with Alexander Gerst
For the final highlight of the visit, Federal Economics Minister Altmaier was taken to the Columbus Control Center at GSOC. At 11:50 a.m. the time had come and the loudspeakers sounded: "I am ready" - Alexander Gerst was connected live from the International Space Station. During the video transmission, the so-called "Inflight Call", the Minister talked to the German ESA astronaut about Gerst's forthcoming tasks as the first German ISS commander, the importance of research in weightlessness and links with research and development work on Earth. "Astro Alex" also addressed his concern to appeal to the younger generation with the unique experiments in space and to inspire them for science. After 15 minutes, the transmission between the Columbus Control Centre and the ISS ended and Alexander Gerst bid farewell to the guests in Oberpfaffenhofen with a personal message. With the impressions from the live call, Federal Minister of Economics Peter Altmaier concluded his visit to DLR.