Under an agreement signed in August between Polish Space Agency (POLSA) and the European Space Agency (ESA) Polish astronaut Slawosz Uznański is to take part in a mission to the ISS to "test Poland’s high tech" and conduct scientific experiments.
POLSA head Grzegorz Wrochna told Polish Radio on Friday that the tests are designed to allow for faster development of Polish companies in the space industry.
"One of the experiments is to test Polish AI, but we also plan to carry out mechanical experiments, including those in the space mining sector," Wrochna said, adding that Uznański is also expected to "test equipment, which might be used for future space missions."
On August 4, Poland's Development and Technology Minister Waldemar Buda signed an agreement on behalf of the Polish government with the ESA and American space company Axiom Space on a mission to the International Space Station, according to reports at the time.
The agreements came after Poland increased its financial contribution to the ESA by EUR 295 million earlier this year.
Buda told the media at the time: "We have 400 companies active in the space sector. We want them to gain momentum through these agreements and cooperation with the ESA, to reach a higher level and contribute to the development of modern technology."
Buda said in late June that scientist Sławosz Uznański would fly into space on a European space mission, becoming Poland's second astronaut after the late Mirosław Hermaszewski, who took part in an eight-day Soviet space mission in 1978.
In September, Uznański was admitted at the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany where he is now undergoing tests and daily training for a potential space mission.
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Source: IARe