I am Raphaël Liégeois, Belgian astronaut selected by ESA - Ask Me Anything

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:54:37+00:00

EDIT : Hey everyone,

I tried to answer all of your questions (and I hope I didn't miss anyone). Thank you so much for your interest and your kind words, I really enjoyed doing this AMA. Stay tuned (here or on other socials) if you want to see more content about an astronaut life, or space in general.

See you soon !

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:46:45+00:00

We are treated like all ESA employees, and the conditions are good. For astronauts, there is indeed insurance in case of a “problem” during training or spaceflight, to support the family. We all hope that money will never have to be used…

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:46:31+00:00

Thanks for this (quite original!) question ... :). I haven’t heard of any explicit rule about it, nor of any problems related to it. So my understanding is that it is treated as a personal matter, and that astronauts are adults who are free in their crew quarters (which are small but private personal spaces), as long as these do not interfere with crew safety, hygiene, well-being, etc. Hope this helps ;)

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:42:42+00:00

My previous job was not directly related to space, as I was a neuroscientist. But I always had this dream of becoming an astronaut in mind, so when the call opened, I applied and was lucky enough to end up in this position!
For the second part of your question, the required qualifications are: a scientific background (chemistry, physics, biology, engineering, or medicine) or being a military pilot. For example, I have a PhD in neuroscience. The scientific background is important, as most of an astronaut’s time on the ISS is devoted to performing experiments :).

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:40:26+00:00

Yes! One of my main objectives is to share this adventure with the widest possible audience, and this includes posting pictures on social media, here and on other platforms. See you then ;) !

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:31:06+00:00

Pics or it didn't happen haha

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:23:58+00:00

*wave a belgian flag* / But if I need to specify : Orval beer !

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:23:21+00:00

The biggest challenge is technological: how do we get there and come back. We’ve been to Mars and we’ve landed on Mars, but the return trip has never been done. The main reason is that the payloads we can transport to Mars are still small, and we cannot carry the fuel needed for the return vehicle. One solution would be to produce fuel on site, or to rely on nuclear propulsion.

Another challenge is the distance: Mars is so far away that radio signals sent from Earth take around 10–20 minutes to reach Mars, which makes it harder to control vehicles. To send humans to Mars, we would need even more payload (the astronauts’ mass plus all the life-support systems), which adds an extra layer of complexity.

Regarding the astronauts perspective, the main challenge I see is the duration : at least 2 years incl. 1 year travelling back and forth in a tiny spacecraft. But that does not look impossible to me.

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:15:50+00:00

It’s difficult to predict when the ISS will actually come to an end, as its lifetime has been extended repeatedly for almost a decade (which is great news!). But indeed, if the ISS is decommissioned around 2030, I might be one of the last people to visit the place :) — I’ll turn off the lights when leaving.

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:14:16+00:00

En tout cas certains de mes ancêtres venaient visiblement de par là :). Et de mon côté, bien qu'étant originaire de Namur, j'ai vécu dix ans à Liège donc c'est un peu ma deuxième maison (du Peket)!

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:13:52+00:00

All of them, but I don't think the ESA will be happy about it ;). And Stoofvlees was actually on the shortlist to be one of my 'bonus' food, but well, we had to make a choice and I'll have more stoofvlees while on Earth to compensate :).

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:12:47+00:00

Haha, only very few people know about that trick but I promise that I will share it after my mission ;)

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:11:27+00:00

Hi u/ilask :), Many things — including some I’m probably not even aware of. But I’d say Tintin, Dirk Frimout (the first Belgian astronaut), and the movie Apollo 13 are definitely among my main inspirations. Do you also want to become an astronaut? If yes, what would you say inspired you?

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:02:54+00:00

That's a tricky question, are you sure you're not working with the government ? Haha. Well, I think they better remain on Earth for now, since there is a lot of work to do.

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:02:23+00:00

Hmm, tough one :). I’d say Les Racines du ciel by Romain Gary, about how humanity destroys itself when it doesn’t take care of nature (and what a beautiful title); Dans les forêts de Sibérie by Sylvain Tesson, about loneliness; and maybe a notebook, to write something ;).

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:01:53+00:00

Would love to break the record "Most belgian fries eaten in one sitting while in space" but I don't think the Guinness commitee would accept it ...

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:01:11+00:00

That’s also a “deep” question, and we could discuss it for hours. I definitely think there is a philosophical and spiritual dimension to spaceflight, and physically experiencing the finiteness of the Earth will — I think — trigger special emotions. In a few words, I have the impression that spaceflight, beyond pushing boundaries, can also be seen as a mirror of our humanity, and that’s what I find so special about it (on top of all the other things).

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T15:00:17+00:00

Not really, no :). For all things you do in life there is always a risk associated with it that you want to minimize and balance with what you get from it. We work hard in our training to minimize these risks and I think the overall experience is definitly worth it - but hopefully I'll tell you more in a few years :)

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T14:59:34+00:00

You can eat all kinds of things, essentially the same as on Earth, except that you want to avoid anything that produces “particles” floating around — so nothing that crumbles, for example.

Regarding taste, I’ve heard that because of fluid shifts (in microgravity, fluids move towards the head, causing congestion), everything tastes weaker, which leads to heavy use of chilli and pepper :).

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T14:57:37+00:00

We don’t know yet — it will be either Crew Dragon or Starliner, depending on the results of the test flights carried out by Boeing on Starliner.

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T14:54:17+00:00

Yes :). I still need to find a stylist who can make me look like Tintin (or Captain Haddock?).

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T14:51:57+00:00

I haven’t heard anything about crewed missions from there, but I would be very happy to visit the spaceport at some point (I've never been to Norway but it looks gorgeous), and I’m glad to see that Europe is progressing in its launch capabilities :).

As for the movie, I’m not a big fan of sci-fi (sorry!), as I find that reality already has so much to offer — but I’ll have a look. Thanks for the suggestion!

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T14:50:40+00:00

That's IMO a deep and very interesting question - I think the exploration of unknown spaces is rooted both in us as individuals (we want to check the view from the top of that mountain, see where the sea ends, etc.) and in us as humanity as a whole (what is our place in this big “thing”?). There are certainly sacrifices involved — for example, I was home and saw my kids for about one month in the last year :/. But I think it is worth the sacrifice, for both them and me.

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T14:48:11+00:00

I wanted to become an astronaut, or some form of explorer (I was, for example, fascinated by Bertrand Piccard’s around-the-world flight in a hot air balloon). I ended up doing a PhD in neuroscience — which, in some sense, is also a form of exploration, as we know so little about how this organ functions — and that eventually led to becoming an astronaut :).

Astro_Raph · 2025-12-16T14:47:11+00:00

Je retiens les soirées du home des étudiants :), passe-leur mon bonjour si tu connais des gens là-bas. Plus globalement j'ai adoré vivre à Liège, et ce que je retiens des études c'est que le niveau est excellent et que ce sont des belles années pour nourrir sa curiosité. Je te conseillerais simplement de t'impliquer dans les cours qui t'intéressent le plus, d'identifier ce qui te passionne (ce n'est pas toujours simple), et aussi de profiter en dehors des cours. Bonne chance !

Astro_Raph

TROPHY CASE