The city of Arizona has played a crucial role in the history of the moon's exploration

FLAGSTAFF, Arizona – When we think of space missions and moon landings, we usually think of Cape Canaveral, Florida, and Houston, Texas.

But this city of Arizona has also played a crucial role in space exploration. It is here that NASA trained all of its Apollo astronauts before setting foot on the moon and that professors, scientists, astronauts and astronomers are still conducting research on the moon and the moon today. Space for NASA.

"It's very exciting to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 landings, but this work has not stopped," said Laszlo Kestay, a geology researcher at the US Geological Survey.

The city spent last year celebrating its place in the history of the lunar landings. There were more than 100 events and the astronauts met.

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This is not very well known, but Flagstaff still plays an important role in understanding the moon. In this section of the desert mountain pine forest, Nadine Barlow, director of space grants at NASA and Northern Arizona University, is studying the best place for humans to live on the moon.

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"It's actually about sending humans and establishing a base in perhaps the largest basin of impact on the moon's surface, called the South Pole Aiken Basin", said Barlow. "It is located near the south pole (of the moon). It's a very large impact pool.

Barlow said that there was a Chinese rover at this location that was providing them with information about a "possible landing site". The base would house scientists, engineers and – depending on the duration of the base – doctors and farmers.

When the Apollo astronauts marched on the moon, they also brought back samples of rock and soil, which are still being researched. Barlow said scientists continue to have a "better understanding of the moon's geological history".

"We sort of have a broad overview of what we believe the moon has gone through to look like it is today, but we are now starting to get new data sets, higher resolution data, new information that makes us pause and say "well, maybe this broad brush of the moon is not quite right," Barlow said.

Scientists originally thought the moon was dry but that vision changed.

"More recent studies show that the moon contains volatile substances like water in some places," Barlow said. "That's why we're reconsidering … we need to take a closer look at the details to know how to do that without getting rid of all the volatile substances at such an impact."

The US Geological Survey helped bring NASA to Flagstaff more than 50 years ago.

One of the projects currently being worked on by scientists in Arizona is the mapping of the landing sites of a nuclear-powered drone intended to fly into the atmosphere of Titan, the largest moon. of Saturn.

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"The very idea of ​​robbing a vehicle on the moon of another planet is a wild mission," Kestay said.

NASA came to Flagstaff because it could provide the agency with a nearby meteorite crater, as well as desolate volcanic lands that could serve as a virtual replica of the moon's surface.

In the fields surrounding the city, the USGS created fake craters that resembled the surface of the moon by blasting holes in the fields. There, the Apollo astronauts trained to experience a simulated lunar experience firsthand before setting foot on the moon.

Astronauts are always taken to these places to see how the Apollo astronauts were and find their inspiration.

Barlow said that space exploration remained an exciting time.

"I remember my childhood watching Neil Armstrong take the first step on the surface of the moon," said Barlow. To be part of the next generation and the scientific exploration of the moon and prepare the return of humans on the moon and on Mars and elsewhere in the solar system – it's a very exciting time. "