Claude Nicollier
Claude Nicollier | |
---|---|
1978 ESA Group | |
Missions | STS-46, STS-61, STS-75, STS-103 |
Mission insignia |
Claude Nicollier (born 2 September 1944 in
He was appointed full professor of Spatial Technology at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne on 28 March 2007.[2]
He was an expert board member of Swiss Space Systems, until the company's dissolution.[3]
Early life and education
Nicollier was born September 2, 1944. After graduating from the
In 2004, he started teaching at the École Polytechnique Fédérale de Lausanne, and became a full professor in March 2007.
Astronaut career
Concurrently with his part-time research activities, he joined the Swiss Air Transport School in
Nicollier's technical assignments in the Astronaut Office have included flight software verification in the
He is a member of the Swiss Astronomical Society, the Astronomical Society of the Pacific, the Swiss Air Force Officers Society (AVIA), and the Swiss Academy of Engineering Sciences and fellow of the British Interplanetary Society. He is also an honorary member of the Swiss Aero Club, the Swiss Society of Engineers and Architects, and the Swiss Astronomy Day Society.
Nicollier has spent over 1000 hours in space (42 days, 12 hours and 5 minutes), including one space walk lasting 8 hours and 10 minutes. He served as mission specialist on four missions with four different space shuttles.
STS-61-K
His first spaceflight was planned to be
STS-46
Nicollier's first spaceflight was as a mission specialist on the 8-day Space Shuttle mission aboard
STS-61
His second spaceflight was as a mission specialist on the 10-day mission aboard Endeavour, called STS-61, in 1993. It was the first mission to perform maintenance on the Hubble Space Telescope, which had been launched three years previously. The nature of this repair was to correct a 2 nm error in the lens, which caused significant distortion of the images taken by the telescope.[7]
STS-75
In 1996 he took part in
STS-103
His final spaceflight was an eight-day mission aboard Space Shuttle
Following his astronaut career, he delivered a lecture on his experiences, “Revisiting Hubble,” at the first Starmus Festival in 2011 in the Canary Islands. The talk was published in the book Starmus: 50 Years of Man in Space.[10]
Awards and honors
Nicollier has received several awards and honors:[1]
- Doctor Honoris Causa from Business School Lausanne (2011)
- Swiss Astronomy Award (2007)
- NASA Distinguished Service Medal (2001)
- Albert Einstein Medal (1998)[11]
- NASA Space Flight Medals (1992, 1993, 1996, 1999)
- Prix d'honneur de la Fondation Pro Aero, Switzerland (1992)
- International Aeronautical Federation(1994)
- Silver Medal from the Académie Nationale de l'Air et de l'Espace, France (1994)
- Collier Trophy (awarded to the crew of STS-61) from the National Aeronautics Association (1994)
- Prix de l'Université de Lausanne (1994)
- Honorary doctorates from the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology, Lausanne, and the University of Geneva (both in 1994)
- International Space Hall of Fame (1997)[12]
Personal life
He is widowed (Susana Perez of Monterrey, Mexico, died December 2007).[1] Together they had two daughters.[13]
Other work
Nicollier made a cameo appearances on the TV show Home Improvement by Touchstone Television (Series 3, Episode 24, "Reality Bytes").
Notes
- ^ a b c d e f g "Astronaut Bio:C. Nicollier". NASA. December 2007. Retrieved December 30, 2010.
- ^ EPFL press release: Claude Nicollier nommé professeur ordinaire de technologies spatiales, 28 March 2007.
- ^ "About us". Swiss Space Systems. Archived from the original on 21 October 2013. Retrieved 21 October 2013.
- ISBN 9781496212252.
- ^ "Nicollier". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on November 26, 2010. Retrieved December 30, 2010.
- ^ "STS-46 Atlantis". Spacefacts.de. March 27, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2023.
- ^ "STS-61 Endeavour". Spacefacts.de. March 27, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2023.
- ^ "STS-75 Columbia". Spacefacts.de. March 27, 2020. Retrieved January 15, 2023.
- ^ "Claude Nicollier". ESA. Retrieved December 30, 2010.
- ^ "Starmus Festival and Stephen Hawking Launch the Book "Starmus, 50 Years of Man in Space"".
- ^ "Einstein Haus Bern (Albert Einstein Medal section)". Einstein Society. Retrieved January 15, 2023.
- ^ "Alamogordo Hall of Fame Honors 5 Space-Flight Pioneers". El Paso Times. El Paso, Texas. September 2, 1997. p. 9 – via Newspapers.com.
- ^ "Claude Nicollier: family". spacefacts.de. Retrieved December 30, 2010.
This article is originally based on Claude Nicollier's biography from NASA, which is in the public domain.