Pedro Duque
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|
Pedro Duque | |
|---|---|
.jpg) Duque in 2000 | |
| Minister of Science and Innovation | |
| Assumed office June 7, 2018 | |
| Monarch | Felipe VI |
| Prime Minister | Pedro Sánchez |
| Preceded by | Position established |
| Member of the Congress of Deputies | |
| Assumed office 21 May 2019 | |
| Constituency | Alicante |
| Personal details | |
| Born | 14 March 1963 Madrid, Spain |
| Nationality | Spanish |
| Political party | Independent |
| Spouse(s) | Lourdes García (divorced) Consuelo Femenía |
| Children | Andrés (b. 1988) Irene (b. 1996) Marc (b. 1998) |
| Occupation | Flight engineer |
| Status | Retired |
| Awards | Grand Cross of Aeronautical Merit Prince of Asturias Award for International Cooperation  Member of the Order of Friendship (Russian Federation)Medal "For Merit in Space Exploration" |
| Space career | |
| ESA astronaut | |
Time in space | 18d 18h 46min |
| Selection | 1992 ESA Group |
| Missions | STS-95, Soyuz TMA-3/2 |
Mission insignia |   |
Pedro Francisco Duque Duque, OF, OMSE (Madrid, 14 March 1963) is a Spanish astronaut and aeronautics engineer who serves as Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities of the Government of Spain. He is also Member of the Congress of Deputies since May 2019. He was the first Spanish astronaut.
Biography[edit]
Early life and education[edit]
He was born in Madrid in 1963, as the son of an agricultural engineer who worked as an air traffic controller, and a housewife from Badajoz. In 1986 Duque earned a degree in Aeronautical Engineering from the Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. In 1986 he worked for GMV and for the European Space Agency (ESA) for six years before being selected as an astronaut candidate in 1992.
Astronaut[edit]
Duque underwent training in both Russia and the United States. His first spaceflight was as a mission specialist aboard space shuttle mission STS-95, during which Duque supervised ESA experimental modules. In October 2003, Duque visited the International Space Station on board of a Soyuz TMA Ship for several days during a crew changeover. The scientific program of this visit was called by ESA/Spain Misión Cervantes.
University and Business[edit]
In 2003 he started working at UPM School of Aeronautical Engineers as head of operations of the Spanish USOC, also lecturing students on space science and operations.[1]
In 2006 Duque was named managing director of Deimos Imaging, a private company, that in 2009 put in orbit the first Spanish earth observation satellite (Deimos 1) with uses in agriculture, forestry wildfire detection and control. In 2011 he was named CEO of the Company.
Return to the ESA[edit]
In October 2011 Duque returned to his position in the European Space Agency, retaking his position as an astronaut. Until 2015 he was the leader of the Flight Operations Office, with responsibility for ESA operations in the ISS. After that he assumed the responsibility of the review of future ESA manned flights, within the ESA's astronaut corps.
Minister[edit]
After the success of the motion of no confidence against the government of Mariano Rajoy in June 2018, President Pedro Sanchez named Pedro Duque Minister of Science, Innovation and Universities.[2]
In April 2019, Duque announce that his ministry was going to increase Spain's contribution to the European Space Agency by €701 million between 2020 and 2026 to ensure a proper contribution regarding the Spanish economy size.[3]
As the rest of the Sánchez cabinet, Duque ran for the April 2019 general election, being elected MP for Alicante.[4]
Honors and Decorations[edit]
- Order Of Friendship of the Russian Federation (1995)
- Grand Cross of Aeronautical Merit (1999)
- Prince of Asturias Award of International Cooperation (1999)
- Doctor Honoris Causa of the Technical University of Valencia (2005)
- Medal "For Merit in Space Exploration" of the Russian federation (2011)
- Doctor Honoris Causa of the European University of Madrid (2013)
- Doctor Honoris Causa of the National University of Distance Education (2016)
- Doctor Honoris Causa of the University of Almería
See also[edit]
References[edit]
- ^ "El Astronauta e Ingeniero Aeronáutico Pedro Duque "ficha" por su Escuela". Escuela Técnica Superior de Ingenieros Aeronaúticos (in Spanish). Universidad Politécnica de Madrid. 21 October 2004. Archived from the original on 8 December 2004. Retrieved 28 April 2005.
- ^ "Astronaut Pedro Duque appointed to Spain's new Cabinet". 6 June 2018.
- ^ Domínguez, Nuño (2019-04-26). "España aumenta 700 millones su contribución a la exploración del espacio". El País (in Spanish). ISSN 1134-6582. Retrieved 2019-06-01.
- ^ "Carcedo y Duque recogen su acta de diputados en el Congreso". Consalud (in Spanish). Retrieved 2019-06-01.
External links[edit]
- ESA profile page
- NASA Biography
- Spacefacts biography of Pedro Duque
- Events and Conferences
- Telescope Hosting site in Nerpio, Spain
- España: quién es Pedro Duque, el primer astronauta español y nuevo ministro de Ciencia
