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UK engineer says Moon is 'stepping stone' to Mars

BBC Keith has white hair and a white beard. He wears glasses and smiles broadly as he is interviewed.BBC
Keith Wright worked on scientific instruments at Kennedy Space Center

A British man who worked for Nasa during the historic Apollo 11 mission says he is "excited" about the Artemis II launch which will see astronauts fly around the Moon for the first time in more than 50 years.

Keith Wright, from Buckland Newton, Dorset, worked on scientific instruments at Kennedy Space Center, and even etched a Union flag onto a solar panel which remained on the Moon.

Nasa is aiming for to launch the latest crewed mission on Wednesday.

"It's been too long," the retired engineer tells the BBC. "It isn't a joke - it is April the 1st and we are going back."

NASA/ESA Keith Wright carries the Lunar Laser Ranging experiment across the swing arm towards the Apollo 11 Saturn V with two other men in hard hats.NASA/ESA
Wright (centre) etched a Union flag onto a solar panel that was left on the Moon

Wright was previously a systems engineer at Bendix Aerospace, and at Nasa was responsible for the Apollo Lunar Surface Experiments Package.

"I was involved in the launch preparation of the experiments that the astronauts put out on the lunar surface," he explains.

"We were living in Florida right near Kennedy Space Centre."

The scientist even recalls a scene in the Tom Hanks-starring Apollo 13 film that brings back memories of his time at at Cape Canaveral.

"People may remember there was a bit at the beginning where there's a young lady being talked to by one of the astronauts at a party.

"Well that happened to my wife - Fred Haise who was the lunar module pilot, spent half the evening talking to my wife."

K. Wright/ESA Wright training Apollo 16 astronauts John Young and Charlie Duke on how to operate the ALSEP Active Seismic Experiment Thumper.K. Wright/ESA
He also trained astronauts how to operate the equipment
Getty Images Astronaut Buzz Aldrin stands beside an American flag placed on the moon. Getty Images
The first moon landing was in 1969

Mr Wright believes returning to the Moon will benefit the future of mankind.

"We've learnt to live in Earth's orbit quite well over the last 20 or so years," he says.

"We now need to learn to live properly off the planet because we need to spread our humanity away from the Earth.

"With the Earth we've got all our eggs in one basket, and if anything really disastrous happened we are in serious trouble, so we want to go to Mars, and the Moon is a stepping stone on the way."

NASA Official portrait of the Apollo 11 crew Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins and Buzz Aldrin, dressed in their spacesuits, taken against the backdrop of an image of the Moon.NASA
Neil Armstrong, Michael Collins, and Buzz Aldrin were aboard Apollo 11
NASA The image shows four astronauts in bright orange space suits posing for a formal group portrait against a dark background. The suits are bulky with blue joints, straps and pockets, emphasising their technical design. Three astronauts stand behind one who is seated, all facing the camera. They all have fairly neutral expressions, keeping the focus on the uniforms. Mission-style patches and flags, including US and Canadian flags, are visible on their arms and chests. Soft, focused lighting makes the vivid orange suits stand out dramatically.NASA
The Artemis II crew are Christina Koch (left), pilot Victor Glover (back centre); commander Reid Wiseman (front centre) and Jeremy Hansen (right)

He adds: "There's a big difference between Artemis and Apollo.

"Apollo was funded totally by America. Artemis is an international project like the Space Station was... the Europeans have provided the propulsion module for the spacecraft on this mission and will be doing so for the rest of the Artemis flights."

The Artemis II mission, which will last about 10 days, will take its astronauts further into space than anyone has been before.

It aims to set the stage for an eventual human landing on the lunar surface for the first time since the Apollo missions of the 1960s and 70s.

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