French astronaut Thomas Pesquet will join the International Space Station (ISS) for a second time in the spring of 2021 as commander. This is the first time that a French astronaut will lead a space mission.
Former airline pilot, Thomas Pesquet (43) became on November 17, 2016 the tenth Frenchman to go into space. During his stay, the astronaut carried out around a hundred experiments on behalf of ESA, CNES and NASA. He also has two six-hour spacewalks (EVA) to his credit. But that was just the beginning.
Since his return to Earth, Thomas Pesquet had never hidden his desire to join the ISS again. Besides, we know that the Moon or the planet Mars also tickle him.
His wish will soon be granted. This return, initially scheduled for 2024, has been brought forward to next April 22 . And surprise:he has just been promoted to commander! The announcement was made this Tuesday at a press conference.
This is a first for a Frenchman and only the third time that a European astronaut has led such an operation. "I am very honored and pleased to be offered command of the Station for my second mission “, reacted the French astronaut on Twitter.
In concrete terms, the Frenchman will have to "ensure day-to-day management, facilitate the work of the crew, and in an emergency situation, make decisions - even if everything the world is perfectly trained and knows what to do “, detailed the ESA during its press conference.
Note that this new trip will take place aboard a SpaceX capsule, as part of the Crew-2 mission. During his first stay, the Frenchman had integrated a Russian Soyuz capsule. Thomas Pesquet will then become the first ESA astronaut to fly aboard one of these vessels launched on a Falcon 9 rocket from Florida, USA.
For this mission called Alpha, named after the star Alpha Centauri, the closest to the Sun, he will accompany NASA astronauts Shane Kimbrough and Megan McArthur, as well as the JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Akihiko Hoshide.
When they arrive, they will replace the current crew of the Crew-1 mission, already piloted by SpaceX last November. This includes Commander Michael Hopkins, pilot Victor J. Glover, as well as mission specialists Soichi Noguchi and Shannon Walker.
