Since its launch by the US space agency (NASA) in 2011, Mission X has involved more than 500,000 students worldwide. The educational project, led since 2018 by the European Space Agency (ESA) and UK Space Agency, has two objectives:
- Physical activities to improve strength, endurance, balance, and team coordination ;
- Scientific activities to enhance, among other things, critical thinking, scientific reasoning, and teamwork skills.
This project encourages young people to eat healthily and exercise regularly to stay healthy, while raising their awareness of scientific and technical careers through the inspiring image of an astronaut during their years of training. It is also an international collaborative event, as each activity reported on ESA’s Mission X website earns steps for Luna and Leo, our two astronaut mascots on their way to the Moon.
Young astro-athletes in the spotlight
Once again, the 2023/2024 edition was a success, as activities carried out by young people across Europe, including more than 700 young people in France, enabled Luna and Léo to travel 706,432 km, almost twice the distance between the Earth and the Moon. To celebrate their achievements, nearly 140 children from Occitanie and Hauts-de-France were invited by CNES, which coordinates the Mission X challenge in France, to take part in a day of celebration at the Cité de l’Espace on June 21.
The students were awarded their participation certificates and presented the activities they had carried out, under the attentive eye of Sébastien Rouquette, a CADMOS expert from CNES who supervises some of the European experiments conducted on board the International Space Station (ISS).
On the schedule:
- Visit to the Cité de l’espace;
- Meeting with Sébastien Rouquette, CNES/CADMOS, head of scientific parabolic flight campaigns and expert in the development and monitoring of experiments carried out on board the ISS;
- Workshop entitled “How ESA recruits its astronauts,” designed and led by Cité de l’Espace;
- Presentation of activities carried out and awarding of certificates of participation.
For more information, visit the Mission X project page !
