Österreichisches Weltraum Forum / Austrian Space Forum

04/11/2026

🚀 Six analog astronauts graduated during the AMADEE-27 training weekend!

A proud moment for the ÖWF and our newest generation of analog astronauts.

After months of preparation, teamwork, and challenging training, six members of the Class of 2026 have officially graduated.

And for four of them, the adventure is just getting started!

Renana, Nathan, Olivia, and Ludivoca will join the AMADEE-27 field crew, working alongside experienced analog astronauts who have already completed a mission.

Together, they will take on new challenges, contribute to exciting research, and help prepare for the next steps in simulating human exploration on Mars.

We’re proud of all six graduates and can’t wait to see what comes next.

Congratulations, Class of 2026! 🎓🔴

02/11/2026

📣 Wir bereiten uns auf vor! Unsere internationale -Analogmission in Portugal nimmt Gestalt an. 🚀 Wir simulieren zukünftige Mars-Expeditionen, um wichtige Operationen zu testen und die Menschheit näher an den Roten Planeten zu bringen. Am Wochenende konnten wir Abläufe und Equipment auf dem Betriebsgelände unseres Logistikpartner Gebrüder Weiss in Wels testen. 🤩

💫 Mehr Details in unserer Presseaussendung: https://ow.ly/GeON5102KCJ

📸: Gebrüder Weiss

01/11/2026

Seven experiment teams, six analog astronauts and around 15 OeWF team members trained together in Wels on 30-31 October 2026 in preparation for the AMADEE-27 Mars simulation.

Hosted by Gebrüder Weiss at their logistics center, the weekend gave the crew and our mission teams a first hand look at some of the AMADEE-27 experiments: three robotics experiments (ACUBENS, CRES, MARVEL), three human factors experiments (BrainHeartIso MNM, SPACEPATCH, MarsAge) and one habitat operations experiment (HALO).

Operational and technical challenges show up best with real hardware in the room. The experiment teams can now use what they learned to improve their experiments, which supports a smoother and safer operation during the AMADEE-27 Mars simulation itself.

Thank you to Gebrüder Weiss for hosting us for two days, to all experiment teams who travelled to Austria with their hardware, and to our OeWF team members for asking the important questions.

👨‍🔬Experiment teams and institutions:
ACUBENS (University of Würzburg, THWS)
BrainHeartIso MNM (MBRU, Medical University of Graz)
CRES (ESA)
HALO (TUM)
MARVEL (FH Oberösterreich)
SPACEPATCH (DLR Institute of Aerospace Medicine)
MarsAge (DLR Institute of Aerospace Medicine, King’s College London, Institute of Molecular Biology)

🔴 AMADEE-27 Mars Simulation in cooperation with Observatório do Lago Alqueva, NUCLIO, INESC TEC and Universidade de Évora.

Which experiment would you like to hear more about? Tell us in the comments.

30/10/2026

The AMADEE-27 experiment training weekend at Gebrüder Weiss in Wels started this morning, together with the announcement of our field crew.

From 5 to 18 April 2027, these six analog astronauts will be the eyes and hands of our scientific experiments in Monsaraz, Portugal. Our motto: Humans and Robots together on Mars.

https://ow.ly/NnRC5102q2e

What does “humans and robots together” mean to you? Tell us in the comments. 👇

Gebrüder Weiss
INESC TEC NUCLIO - Núcleo Interactivo de Astronomia

28/10/2026

The full challenge statements for the NASA Space Apps Challenge are out, and Vienna hosts a local event on 14 and 15 November! 🚀

Space Apps is NASA’s global hackathon, where teams around the world spend a weekend tackling real challenges using open data from NASA and its partner agencies. Coders, scientists, designers, storytellers, students: everyone brings something to the table.

Read through the challenges, find the one that sparks your curiosity, and start building your team. You don’t need to be a space expert, just someone who wants to solve problems.

🔗 Registration and all details: https://ow.ly/c6c65100Cm3

NASA Space Apps Challenge Vienna

27/10/2026

Our Director, Gernot Groemer, entered our Aouda.S spacesuit to test a sensor from the inside. 🧑‍🚀 Analog astronauts Robert Wild & Arfor Houwman provided expert support as suit technicians. We also successfully tested experimental motion tracking with inertial sensors. 🤩

This SIMOC sensor, identical to those used for and future missions, is vital for collecting critical motion tracking data in Mars analog environments. Gioele Liotta and Benjamin Reimeir carried out these experimental motion measurements using the sensors fitted to the suit. 💪

📸: OeWF

26/10/2026

| Experiment 15/15 · Water is everything on Mars. Letting it evaporate is not an option.
HALO (Humidity-Assisted Algae Loop Optimization) tests passive water recovery in a photobioreactor using integrated humidity capture. Can evaporation mitigation maintain biological stability while reducing water loss to near zero?

ℹ️Comics by Bera Loretto using AI

25/10/2026

Drei Tage, ein Ziel im Sonnensystem, ein Missionskonzept: So lautete die Abschlussaufgabe in der Lehrveranstaltung „Einführung in die Raumfahrt-Technik“ an der FHV - Vorarlberg University of Applied Sciences .

Vortragender war ÖWF Direktor Dr. Gernot Grömer. Er brachte Anekdoten aus dem Mission Support Center und Erfahrungen aus Mars Simulationen mit. Orbitalmechanik, Treibstoffbudgets, Schubsysteme und Risikoanalyse wurden so zu Bausteinen für ein Konzept.
Das Team IO-HEAT, wählte den Jupitermond Io, den vulkanisch aktivsten Körper des Sonnensystems für ihr Missionskonzept. Da Jupiters Strahlung einen dauerhaften Orbit ausschließt planten sie 10 Vorbeiflüge in 200 bis 300 km Höhe. Das Budget: 1 Milliarde Euro.

https://ow.ly/jgHc5100g53

Welches Ziel im Sonnensystem würdet ihr mit einem Budget von 1 Milliarde Euro ansteuern?

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23/10/2026

🚀 Got a skill, activity or idea to share? Bring it to Biosphere 2!

The Analog Astronaut Conference 2027 is looking for people who can bring something special to the analog astronaut community.

🧑‍🚀 Experienced in EVA procedures or crew psychology?
🧘 Ready to lead a yoga, meditation or fitness session?
🥾 Know a great hiking route or outdoor activity?
🎨 Have ideas for creative workshops, photography or team-building?

We welcome diverse skills and experiences that help people learn, connect and thrive together.

📍 Biosphere 2, Arizona
📅 29 April – 2 May 2027

Submit your proposal and help make AAC 2027 an inspiring experience!

👉 Find out more: https://ow.ly/rLJU5100lm5

21/10/2026

A Mars mission has just left Earth, and its target is the Martian moons. 🚀

On 19 October at 21:41 CEST, Japan’s H3 rocket lifted off from Tanegashima Space Center carrying MMX, the Martian Moons eXploration spacecraft. About 71 minutes later, MMX separated from the rocket and began its journey to Mars. 🔴

But MMX is not going to Mars itself. It is going to its two small moons, Phobos and Deimos.

Why these moons? 🌑
Scientists still do not know where Phobos and Deimos came from. They might be asteroids that Mars captured, or they might be debris from a giant impact on Mars long ago. Samples of the moons could help answer that question.

The plan 🔬
✨ Spend about three years in the Martian system, studying both moons up close
✨ Land on Phobos and collect at least 10 grams of material
✨ Deploy Idefix, a small rover built by France and Germany, onto the surface of Phobos
✨ Bring the samples back to Earth in 2031

If it succeeds, MMX will be the first mission ever to return samples from the Martian system. 🌍
Find out more: https://ow.ly/VUC950ZZJGq

📷: JIJI