Just months after mining ended at the Wujek coal mine in Katowice, its underground tunnels are being considered as a test site for space technologies. The facility could help simulate conditions on the Moon and Mars for robots, life support systems, and astronaut training.
The project, developed by Dr Tomasz Rożek and Krzysztof Kurdyła from the Fundacja Nauka. To Lubię foundation, aims to transform the mine into a Space Technology Centre and a Space Settlement Simulation Centre. The natural environment deep underground offers high dust levels, lack of GPS signal, isolation and stress — conditions that are difficult to replicate in sterile laboratories but are crucial for testing before space missions.
So far the Polish Ministry of Science and Higher Education has expressed interest in the concept. On 13 July 2026 the European Space Agency is expected to announce the location of its next technology centre, and the Górnośląsko-Zagłębiowska Metropolis is among the candidates. The region argues it has all the assets to become a European hub for space tech development.
Natural laboratory for space conditions
– Underground excavations create an ideal testing environment. Unlike clean labs, they realistically simulate what astronauts will face on the Moon or Mars: dust, no GPS, isolation, stress – said Leszek Pietraszek, chairman of the Górnośląsko-Zagłębiowska Metropolis.
The plan for the Wujek site includes research on human functioning in isolation, resource management, life support systems, and testing of robots and autonomous technologies. One of the most innovative proposals involves using deep mine shafts to achieve record-breaking free-fall times on Earth for microgravity experiments.
New jobs for former miners
An important part of the concept is the requalification of former coal miners. They are to be trained as laboratory technicians, robot operators, and space infrastructure maintenance specialists. Miners have decades of experience working in extreme conditions underground, which makes them a unique workforce for space-related industries.
– We have experience working in extreme conditions. For decades we have developed technologies to keep people safe in very difficult and hostile environments deep underground – added Pietraszek.
The region already has an active space ecosystem. In Gliwice, KP Labs develops AI for satellites, Future Processing and FP Instruments build software and electronics for space projects, and Flytronic works on satellite communications and drones. ICEYE, a global leader in radar microsatellites, is planning to open an office in Katowice. Representatives of the metropolis stress that a local centre of ESA would attract specialists, companies, startups and research funding for years to come.
Pietraszek called for an immediate feasibility study: – A feasibility study should be commissioned as soon as possible to answer at least some of these questions. The interest from ministries is very important because the mine is in the process of liquidation and we cannot wait several years to decide how to use its infrastructure.
Źródło: WNP.PL, Fot. SaskiaAcht / Shutterstock
