New blog entry from André: ‘Looking for the best heat shield for ISS’

At the start of his last week on the International Space Station, ESA astronaut André Kuipers writes about the ALTEA SHIELD experiment that will one day provide astronauts with an improved radiation shield.

He writes: “When I return through Earth’s atmosphere in my Soyuz I will have spent 193 days in space. My mission will have been the longest European space flight in history. Everything went well thanks to the thousands of people on ground that continuously keep an eye on us. Safety is number one priority in human space flight. Missions such as mine are inherently risky. In the last few weeks I started an experiment that looks at one of these risks: Altea Shield.”

Read more in André’s blog: Looking for the best heat shield for ISS