Spain’s Astronaut Pedro Duque Is IEEE Honorary Member

Practically 30 years after his first mission, Duque remains to be Spain’s most well-known astronaut. Three public colleges have been named after him, and he has acquired quite a few awards. This 12 months, the IEEE Board of Directors made him an IEEE honorary member for “contributions to space exploration, management in collaborative science and expertise applications, and serving as a task mannequin for youthful generations.”

He was unable to attend the 24 April ceremony in New York City, however he expressed his gratitude in recorded acceptance remarks in his award presentation proven in the course of the occasion.

“We engineers of all specialties acknowledge the management of your institute—the biggest and most necessary engineering society on the planet,” he says within the video. “What an honor it’s to belong now to a company whose objective it’s to foster technological innovation and excellence for the advantage of humanity.”

Impressed by Apollo 11

Duque says he knew he needed to be an engineer from a younger age. It’s not shocking that he grew to become curious about aeronautics, as his father was an air site visitors controller who defined to him how airplanes labored.

In 1969, when he was 6 years previous, he was impressed to grow to be an astronaut after watching the Apollo 11 moon landing.

“I didn’t know anybody who wasn’t drawn to area exploration,” after the moon touchdown, he says, laughing. “It was introduced in such an epic method, with declarations about its impression on society. The touchdown made us conscious that humanity was exploring new locations, and I used to be eager on realizing extra about them.”

His dream of changing into an astronaut was unrealistic on the time, he says, as a result of the nation had no area program. Spain was dominated by Francisco Franco, who spent little to no cash on scientific innovation, Duque says.

That modified after Franco died in 1975. The nation transitioned to a democratic constitutional monarchy and commenced collaborating in analysis and improvement applications, significantly with the European Space Agency (ESA).

Astronaut duties

Duque earned an aeronautical engineering diploma in 1986 from the aeronautical and space engineering school on the Polytechnic University of Madrid.

His first job was as an engineer within the flight dynamics group at GMV, an area and expertise firm based mostly in Madrid. He was a member of the orbit dedication group and labored at ESA’s European Space Operations Centre, in Darmstadt, Germany. He helped develop algorithms, orbit computational software program, and pc fashions.

He was additionally a member of the area company’s flight control crew for the European Remote Sensing-1 satellite, launched in 1991, and the European Retrievable Carrier, launched in 1992 on the space shuttle Atlantis’s STS-46 mission.

In 1990, ESA recruited candidates for its astronaut program—which Duque says not often occurs. He and a number of other colleagues utilized.

“Why not?” he says. “What we thought we needed to be after we have been little was now potential.”

After a substantial choice course of, Duque was chosen in 1992 to affix the company’s Astronaut Corps. He skilled on the European Astronaut Centre and on the Russian Cosmonaut Coaching Middle (now often known as the Gagarin Research and Test Cosmonaut Training Center).

In 1994, he served because the prime crew interface coordinator on the ESA–Russian EuroMir area station. He managed communication between the astronauts on the Mir station and the European scientists to assist guarantee orbital experiments and operations ran easily.

NASA chosen Duque to be an alternate payload specialist on the bottom for area shuttle Columbia’s STS-78 mission in 1996. In that position, he was skilled to function and handle scientific experiments, tools, and cargo throughout a crewed mission. He additionally supported the flight from the bottom as a crew interface coordinator.

His first flight into area was in 1998 as a mission specialist representing the ESA on the area shuttle Discovery’s STS-95 mission. He managed in-orbit duties, experiments, spacewalks, and tools operations.

He served as a flight engineer in 2003 onboard the Soyuz TMA-3 Cervantes, a joint mission between Russia and Spain to the International Space Station. He operated the station methods, managed day by day upkeep duties, and carried out scientific experiments assisted by the mission commander.

Reminiscences of flying with John Glenn

The years of coaching and preparation to grow to be an astronaut have been rigorous, he says, however the expertise was fulfilling. Although he spent solely about 10 days on every mission, he says, “they have been very rewarding instances as a result of all of the preparation paid off, and we obtained the outcomes we wanted.”

A few of his favourite reminiscences have been viewing Earth in the course of the day and night time for the primary time, and watching it move from one part to the opposite. One other was seeing the moon flattened to nearly a sliver in the course of the few seconds earlier than it set. Experiencing microgravity was a thrill as nicely, he says.

“I additionally cherish the companionship of the individuals who labored alongside me in area and on the bottom,” he provides.

One was John H. Glenn, the primary American to orbit the Earth. Duque flew with Glenn on Discovery. They talked concerning the choice standards for astronauts. Glenn advised him these on board the Apollo and Gemini missions have been chosen as a result of they have been take a look at pilots, who have been considered almost certainly to deal with issues or failures successfully and proactively.

“The expertise in at this time’s missions is superior sufficient that astronauts received’t be wanted to deal with possible catastrophic tools failures,” Duque says. “As an alternative, they’ll carry out experiments and replace or repair the units utilized in area capsules. However flights to the moon and even Mars will use new varieties of spacecraft which may not essentially work as deliberate, so these astronauts must know tips on how to repair them and probably resolve vital issues on their very own.

“Additionally, future astronauts must reside with others in a confined area for months, and never everybody can try this.”

The value of sudden fame

As Spain’s first astronaut, Duque grew to become a celeb. Amongst his honors are Russia’s Order of Friendship and Spain’s Great Cross of Aeronautical Merit and Princess of Asturias Award. He additionally acquired NASA’s Space Flight Medal, which is given to an astronaut who flies aboard a U.S. area mission.

Studying to navigate sudden fame and being handled like a celeb was difficult, Duque says. Like many engineers, he was accustomed to working behind the scenes and out of the general public eye.

“Being well-known, each within the occupation and the general public, was fairly tough to start with,” he says. “Being a celeb doesn’t come simply to me, however after so a few years, in some way I realized tips on how to take care of it.”

Folks would possibly assume that an astronaut’s management expertise come effortlessly, Duque says, however that’s not at all times the case.

“Everyone offers a lot significance to your opinion, and typically I used to be stunned by that,” he says. “Being an astronaut, you are inclined to have a sure type of management type as a result of it’s what you have got accomplished for years with out realizing it.”

Minister of science and different main roles

His management type has served him nicely. After he retired from the ESA in 2018, he was appointed as Spain’s minister of science, a task he held till 2021. He oversaw the federal government’s insurance policies on scientific analysis, technological improvement, innovation, area applications, and better schooling. Throughout his time period, Spain dedicated to contributing US $800 million (€701 million) between 2020 and 2026 to the ESA—which on the time was the biggest general funding within the company’s historical past.

After retiring as an astronaut, Pedro Duque headed Spain’s Ministry of Science, Innovation, and Universities. At the moment, the IEEE honorary member is the chairman of HispaSat, a Spanish satellite tv for pc firm.Isaac Buj/AP

In 2022, he joined Destinus Spain, a European protection producer that develops applied sciences for plane propulsion and auxiliary methods. He suggested its strategic committee.

The next 12 months, Spain’s authorities appointed him president and chairman of the HispaSat board. Headquartered in Madrid, the satellite tv for pc operator offers broadcasting and broadband providers for Europe, North Africa, and the Americas. The general public-private partnership was in its origin a joint initiative between the Spanish authorities and personal telecom firms.

The IEEE honor was a shock

Duque says he was stunned to be taught that IEEE added him to its membership ranks. He was conscious {that a} colleague had nominated him, however he deemed it unlikely the nomination could be supported.

“Once I began wanting into who its members have been, I questioned why they chose me,” he says. “Clearly, electrical engineering will not be my department, but it surely may have been, as a result of rising up, I used to be simply as curious about telecommunications as I used to be in aeronautics.

“Most engineers know IEEE for its requirements and the work it does in attaining consensus in requirements improvement.”

After discussing with a number of colleagues who have been IEEE members concerning the significance of the IEEE honorary membership—which is bestowed for a big achievement and impression on society— Duque feels the award is a big honor.

“I’m nonetheless within the early part of determining how I can contribute to IEEE,” he says, “and what I can do for the various lots of of hundreds of members, all whom have spectacular qualities.”