SMART NEWS

So Long Chris Hadfield, Thanks for All the Fish

Chris Hadfield, the 53-year old astronaut superstar, is retiring

June 11, 2013

Commander Chris Hadfield. Photo: Canadian Space Agency

Canadian astronaut superstar Chris Hadfield—he who orbited in the International Space Station from December to May and delighted us with songs and quips and gorgeous photos from space—is retiring.

Hadfield, now 53 years old, has been to space three times. CTV News:

He told reporters he didn’t know what he would do next. But he said he was giving himself some time to think about it and to take a much-need break with family.

“I’m making good on a promise to my wife I made 30 years ago that yes, eventually we would live back in Canada,” Hadfield said. “I’m looking forward to the next phase in life.”

For the younger generations among us, Hadfield is probably the most well-known and recognizable astronaut on the planet, thanks in part to the awesome videos and photos he sent down from the ISS. (And the mustache.) The capstone of Hadfield’s social media efforts was this, a music video with his own version of David Bowie’s Space Oddity.

But with Hadfield now back on Earth and set to retire, where else will you learn about all the freaky things otherwise normal-seeming things do in space?

Well, for one, there’s the parody Hadfield at Home:

Otherwise, there is a new set of astronauts up on the ISS right now, and you can follow all of them on Twitter here. We’d specifically point out NASA astronaut Karen L. Nyberg, who’s up there right now streaming photos back to us surface dwellers.

“Tomato soup on a cracker. Lunch.” Photo: Karen Nyberg