André Kuipers
André Kuipers | |
---|---|
1998 ESA Group | |
Missions | Soyuz TMA-4/TMA-3, Soyuz TMA-03M (Expedition 30/31) |
Mission insignia |
André Kuipers (Dutch:
Kuipers is the first Dutch astronaut to return to space. On 5 August 2009, Dutch minister of economic affairs Maria van der Hoeven, announced Kuipers was selected as an astronaut for International Space Station (ISS) Expeditions 30 and 31. He was launched to space on 21 December 2011 and returned to Earth on 1 July 2012.[1][2]
Personal life and education
André Kuipers was born on 5 October 1958 in Amsterdam, in the Netherlands. He graduated from high school in Amsterdam in 1977, and received a medical degree from the University of Amsterdam in 1987. He is married and has three daughters and a son.[3]
When interviewed about his youth, Kuipers stated that he dreamed of becoming an astronaut ever since he was a teenager.[4][5] His dreams became reality when he was selected to the European Astronaut Corps in 1998.
Space flight experience
Kuipers has flown two space missions: first the DELTA mission in 2004. In May 2009, he served as the backup of Belgian astronaut
DELTA Mission
Launch and docking
Using the Soyuz TMA-4, mounted atop a Soyuz-FG rocket, Kuipers and his fellow cosmonauts Gennady Padalka (Russia) and Michael Fincke (USA) rocketed towards the ISS in the early morning of 19 April 2004. The spacecraft flawlessly docked to the ISS two days later.
Experiments
As part of his DELTA mission, Kuipers conducted 21 experiments
Landing
Padalka and Fincke remained on board the ISS for six months, as the Expedition 9 crew.
Kuipers returned to Earth nearly eleven days after launch on 30 April, joined by departing ISS crew members
Expedition 30/31
On 26 November 2008, Dutch minister of economic affairs Maria van der Hoeven pushed for a second, six-month mission for Kuipers in 2011.[9] In the same speech, she said she would support the ISS project with an extra "few" million euros.[9]
After a call with ESA director general
Honours
- Officer of the Order of Orange-Nassau (17 May 2004, Netherlands)[12]
- Knight of the Order of the Netherlands Lion (15 October 2012, Netherlands)[13]
- Honorary citizen of Haarlemmermeer (15 October 2012, Netherlands)[13]
- Honorary doctorate of the University of Amsterdam (8 January 2013, Netherlands)[14]
- Recipient of the Russian Federation)[15]
- Willem-Alexander, 2013
References
This article incorporates public domain material from websites or documents of the
- ^ "ESA astronaut André Kuipers to spend six months on the ISS starting in 2011". Retrieved 9 December 2014.
- ^ Chow, Denise. "Space station trio heading back to Earth in Russian capsule". MSNBC. Retrieved 9 December 2014.
- ^ "André Kuipers". Archived from the original on 30 January 2008. Retrieved 27 January 2008.
- ^ "Preflight Interview: Andre Kuipers". NASA. 1 November 2011. Retrieved 9 February 2023.
- ^ "Dutch Astronaut André Kuipers – a two-part interview". 25 December 2005.
- ^ "NASA – Expedition 31". Retrieved 14 May 2012.
- ^ "List of Experiments". Retrieved 26 November 2008.
- ^ "Dutch ESA astronaut goes to ISS with hefty package of scientific experiments". Retrieved 26 November 2008.
- ^ a b "Kuipers moet uiterlijk in 2011 de ruimte in" (in Dutch). Archived from the original on 19 July 2011. Retrieved 21 September 2009.
- ^ "André Kuipers opnieuw de ruimte in" (in Dutch). Retrieved 21 September 2009.
- ^ Klotz, Irene (23 December 2011). "New crew arrives at International Space Station". Reuters. Archived from the original on 9 January 2012. Retrieved 23 December 2011.
- ^ André Kuipers in de ruimte – website www.volkskrant.nl
- ^ a b Opnieuw koninklijke onderscheiding Kuipers – www.nu.nl
- ^ UvA viert 381ste Dies Natalis - website www.uva.nl
- ^ "OOG Dinsdag: André Kuipers krijgt Poetins vriendschapsmedaille - NOS Nieuws". Archived from the original on 7 April 2014. Retrieved 3 July 2013. – website www.nos.nl