For more than ten years, Laura André-Boyet has shared the daily life of Thomas Pesquet’s astronaut. But who is she?
When he is on Earth, the famous French astronaut Thomas Pesquet divides his time between his partner, Anne Motet, and Laura André-Boyet, his teacher for over eleven years. But who is she? This astronaut teacher 39 years old, the only Frenchwoman to hold this post, trains all those who plan to go on a mission in space. Among the twenty astronauts that she prepares each year at the European Astronaut Center (EAC), in the city of Cologne in Germany, there is in particular Thomas Pesquet, who was his student more than once, but not only. The German Matthias Maurer also took his lessons, as well as the Japanese Akihiko Hoshide and the American Robert Shane Kimbrough.
Born in 1982, Laura André-Boyet grew up in the countryside in Primarette, a village in Isère, with her mother, a literature teacher, her father, a real estate administrator, and her little sister. It was after studying at the École polytechnique de Grenoble that the young woman is really interested in astronomy, until then far from being his favorite subject. Still today, Laura André-Boyet prefers to teach on Earth rather than soar in the air. “Space fascinates me, but it also anguishes me a bit! I am not one of those people who have been passionate since childhood, my vocation was revealed a little later. I don’t dream of being an astronaut. Six-month confinements without a shower: very little for me!“, she explains to Parisian this Saturday, December 25, 2021.
A brilliant and committed woman
After obtaining her engineering degree in Biomedical Sciences, she obtained an internship at CNES (National Center for Space Studies) in Toulouse, in 2007. The same year, she won the international student competition of the IAC (International Astronautical Congress) in Hyderabad, India. Experiences during which the young woman, who evolves in a male environment, does not fail to stand out. Laura André-Boyet was then hired at the Institute of Space Medicine. In 2010, she joined the training division of the European Astronaut Center.
But it doesn’t stop there. The scientist continues to get involved in the aerospace industry. In January 2018, for example, she founded the PASI – Professional Association of Space Instructors – a project aimed at better supervision of tourist flights in space. At the same time, Laura André-Boyet is involved in colleges, high schools, universities and grandes écoles to encourage young people to orient themselves towards science. With all that, we understand better why Thomas Pesquet cannot do without her.
Article written in collaboration with 6Medias.
Photo credits: Nasa via Bestimage