Christer Fuglesang will probably always be recognized as the Swedish astronaut, but nowadays he is above all a professor of space travel at the Royal Institute of Technology in Stockholm. Here he leads the special space center that will promote and coordinate everything at KTH that has to do with space.
At the same time, he is engaged in his own research.
– Among other things, I am involved in a project that looks at the possibility of sending huge “parasols” above the atmosphere to shade the earth and reduce global warming.
And then he teaches students. Interest in his course on manned spaceflight is increasing and this year it has 65 participants, which is a new record.
– Space never ceases to fascinate. Young people notice that a lot is happening in this area. There will be exciting jobs in a future space industry and it will attract many students.
One or two of the participants may dream of one day being able to accompany on the first manned trip to Mars. There are far-reaching plans for such trips and Christer Fuglesang believes that it is only a matter of time before they become a reality.
– The question is not about but when it happens. And who will be first. As it looks now, it is private actors like Elon Musk who are at the forefront.
Space never ceases to fascinate.
Christer Fuglesang is convinced that we humans will sooner or later have to find other places to live than the earth. Things can happen that make our planet uninhabitable and then there need to be alternatives.
– That is the future of humanity, we can not stay here forever. Should something happen here, such as a collision with a large asteroid, it is necessary to have established opportunities to live in another place. Then you have to wait and see if it will be possible to return.
You would think that Christer Fuglesang’s interest in space was aroused early on, he was a child during the space race in the 1960s. But he was not particularly attracted to just that. Instead, it was mathematics and physics that gripped him first.
It was during this time as a doctoral student in particle physics that the idea of traveling to space first appeared. If he only got the chance he would take it, that was the thought he got.
And the chance came.
– I saw an ad where ESA (European space agency) was looking for astronauts. I decided to apply, because this was something I did not want to miss.
During the 1990s, he went through a large number of selection processes and tests. In the end, he reached all the way – in 2003, he would be part of the crew of a space shuttle with destination ISS, the International Space Station.
But six months before estimated launch, the crash occurred with the space shuttle Columbia. Upon re-entering the atmosphere, the craft broke down, killing the entire crew.
– I knew there were risks. That was not something that made me change. My family also continued to support me.
– When you are afraid of something, it is usually for the unknown, but what I was doing felt very familiar and both me and the family were so understanding of everything. We also hung out with other astronaut families.
It would not be until 2006 before Christer Fuglesang was sent on his first trip to the ISS. And three years later, it was time again.
In addition to being fantastic experiences, the two space missions have opened many doors. He is a household name, both in his industry and among the general public.
And he is still open to further space travel for his own part.
– Yes, it was not the case that after two flights I said that now it must be enough. It was ESA that said thank you and goodbye because Sweden is such a small contributing country. So unfortunately, right now there is very little chance for a Swede to be selected for a new spaceflight.
If you had the chance again, what would you answer?
– I would like to go again, to the moon would be exciting. But who would pay, I do not know, he says and laughs.