Twenty years ago, Andre Kuipers took his first steps aboard the International Space Station (ISS). To celebrate this anniversary, the Dutch astronaut shares his own story: from his childhood dream of seeing Earth from space, to the nerve-racking preparations and the endless series of tests he had to endure to become an astronaut. You’ll hear it on the podcast Kuipers and the universe. Listen to the eighth (and final) episode now.
The future of space travel
Until now, there were about five thousand satellites floating in space. Very useful for science. In this way they help fight deforestation. But it is becoming increasingly crowded in its orbit around Earth. All types of commercial satellites are added. With all those artificial satellites in orbit, The risk of collisions and damage is much greater.
However, Andre Kuipers welcomes the arrival of commercial parties into space travel. “They’re more efficient, they’re faster, they’re coming up with new ideas. Think about SpaceX, they’re making rockets that are reusable. That’s great, but we have to make sure it doesn’t become the Wild West.” Kuipers also contributed to SpaceX’s spaceship coupling. How did that happen?
Listen to the eighth (and final) episode of Kuipers en de Kosmos now in your favorite podcast app:
Spotify
Apple Podcast
Curious about more space stories from Andre? In the quest column of the same name, Kuipers en de Kosmos, a Dutch astronaut guides you through the universe each week. For example, he explains how you can recycle urine and sweat in space, and shares his favorite (and most realistic) space movies, He will tell you about the most dangerous moment in space flight: landing.
Astronaut Andre Kuipers (1958) lived and worked in space for 204 days. He is trained as a doctor, but advises you not to consult him.
