PORTRAIT - PAYLOAD SPECIALIST OCKELS, WUBBO - JSC (1981-06-26)NASA
On October 30, 1985, physicist Wubbo Ockels took a giant step for his country when he became the first Dutch citizen to travel into space. Born in Almelo in the Netherlands on March 28, 1946, he earned his degree in mathematics and physics from the University of Groningen and then continued his research at the Nuclear Physics Accelerator Institute.
At the laboratory here he spotted an advertisement on the noticeboard that would change the course of his career forever.
PREFLIGHT (CANDID) - STS-61A/D-1 - GERMANY (1984-12-13)NASA
Ockels responded to the sign recruiting for scientific astronauts and in 1978 he was selected as one of three payload specialists (an astronaut trained to handle highly specialized equipment to conduct experiments in space) to work on Spacelab.
Spacelab Dedication (1982-08-12)NASA
Spacelab was a reusable laboratory developed by the ESA (European Space Agency) that was used on certain space flights to allow scientists to perform experiments in microgravity in Earth’s orbit. It comprised multiple components, including a pressurized module, an unpressurized carrier, and other types of hardware that were arranged in various configurations depending on the needs of each spaceflight.
In this image Ockels meets then-Vice President George Bush at the dedication ceremony for SpaceLab.
CREW TRAINING (EGRESS) - STS-29/61A - JSC (1985-09-27)NASA
Ockels completed survival training and other basic astronaut training in 1980 at NASA’s Johnson Space Centre in Houston before joining the Spacelab-1 crew for training as a back-up payload specialist.
Here you can see a training exercise where mission commander Henry W. Hartsfield, Jr is being lowered from a simulated shuttle orbiter in distress using a descent device called a Sky-Genie.
Space Shuttle Projects (1985-10-01)NASA
In 1983, Ockels worked as a ground communicator and liaison-scientist for the crew on board the space shuttle Columbia during the STS-9/Spacelab-1 mission, before taking to the skies himself two years later.
He was part of a mission aboard the Challenger space shuttle on STS-61A, a German D-1 Spacelab mission. With eight crew members, the Challenger mission became the largest team to fly into space in history and the first where some mission operations were controlled from outside the United States, with the German Space Operations Centre in Oberpfaffenhofen conducting the scientific operations
STS 61-A crewmembers training on the KC-135 (1984-12-17)NASA
Before their journey into space, the crew members had the chance to prepare themselves for what weightlessness would feel like on NASA's KC-135 aircraft.
STS 61-A crew at pre-launch breakfast (1985-10-30)NASA
Ockel’s crew members were Guion S. Bluford, Steven R. Nagel, Henry W. Hartsfield, Bonnie J. Dunbar, Ernst Messerschmid, Reinhard Furrer, and James F. Buchli.
In this image they discuss their upcoming time in space while they have a pre-flight breakfast – their last meal on Earth for a week.
STS 61-A crew leave operations & checkout facility for launch pad (1985-10-30)NASA
Here they can be seen walking from the operations and checkout facility to a crew transfer van that will take them to Launch Pad 39A, where the Challenger awaits its launch.
Launch of the shuttle Challenger begining of the STS 61-A mission (1985-10-30)NASA
And here they have lift off!
STS 61-A crewmembers in Spacelab D-1 science module (1985-10-30)NASA
While in space, the crew completed more than 75 scientific experiments, in diverse fields such as materials science, physiological sciences, biology, communications, and navigation.
This photograph shows mission specialist Guion S. Bluford preparing to perform a physics experiment while Ockels and the other payload specialists work in the background.
Payload specialist Wubbo Ockels in new sleeping restraint (1985-10-30)NASA
Ockels slept away from the other crew members in a unique sleeping restraint. He proposed the concept himself and the hardware was developed by the Technisch Natur Wetenschappelyk Onderzoek (TNO), a Dutch government organization.
This wasn’t his first invention – at 22 he received his first patent for a bicycle chain cleaner he developed.
The crew of the STS 61-A mission egress the Orbiter after landing (1985-11-06)NASA
The shuttle returned to Earth on November 6th, 1985. By the end of the flight, Wubbo Ockels had travelled 110 Earth orbits, and logged over 168 hours in space.
View of ISS as it Rotates 90 Degrees (2011-07-19)NASA
After completing the mission, Ockels was stationed at ESTEC, ESA's research and technology centre in Noordwijk, the Netherlands.
Here he supported human spaceflight activities, including working with the Columbus program, a European project to build a research module for the International Space Station.
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Ockel’s experience in space led him to consider humanity’s dependence on Earth and inspire him to work towards a more sustainable future for the planet. In 2003 he became a full-time professor of Aerospace for Sustainable Engineering and Technology at the Delft University of Technology where he investigated how to exploit alternative sources of energy through new innovative transport concepts. He worked on projects such as the Superbus, an electric bus that can run at around 250 kilometers per hour, and The Ecolution, a zero-emission sailing ship.
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In both 2001 and 2003 he led a team of students to victory in the bi-annual World Solar Challenge in Australia where competitors are challenged to engineer and build a car that can travel the outback along the Stuart Highway powered only by the energy of the sun.
STS 61-A crew portrait onboard Challenger middeck (1985-10-30)NASA
Ockels passed away on May 18, 2014.
He became known for his record-breaking journey into space, but he’ll be remembered for his pursuit of sustainable energy to ensure a future for our planet.
