Astronaut Thomas Pesquet snaps a pic of the 24 Hours of Le Mans circuit from space
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Astronaut Thomas Pesquet snaps a pic of the 24 Hours of Le Mans circuit from space

This upcoming weekend in July 2019 marks the 50th anniversary of the first man on the moon, and in honour of the occasion, we will be sharing a series of articles devoted to unique parallels between the legendary 24 Hours of Le Mans and various space missions. This is the story of a photo of the city of Le Mans and the 24 Hours circuit taken from the International Space Station (ISS) by Thomas Pesquet.

During his six-month mission (from 17 November 2016 to 2 June 2017) aboard the International Space Station (ISS), French astronaut Thomas Pesquet captured some of the most stunning places on Earth with his camera, amassing more than 85,000 snapshots in all. Just two days before his return to Earth, he took a photo of Le Mans and a clearly visible 24 Hours of Le Mans circuit as the ISS was orbiting the globe at 28,000 kph!

Though he was unable to attend the 85th running of the race, Pesquet shared a special video message on social media: "A bit like the space station, the 24 Hours of Le Mans is the laboratory of the average citizen. In space, we also test a wide array of things to find solutions for problems back on Earth and to improve people's lives. Now I see the new 24 Hours regulations are going even further by imposing a reduction of more than 40% in fossil fuel consumption. We aim for performance level while reducing the use of fossil fuels and toxic gas emissions."

Enjoy learning about the links between the 24 Hours of Le Mans and various space missions through this series of articles in honour of the 50th anniversary of the Apollo 11 moon landing.

>> 24 HOURS OF LE MANS – ICKX MARCHES TO VICTORY AT THE 1969 EDITION <<

>> THE START AT THE 2008 24 HOURS OF LE MANS GIVEN ON EARTH AND IN SPACE <<

 

PHOTO: Aerial view of Le Mans and its surroundings taken by French astronaut Thomas Pesquet. 

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