Former SGES-ESCI student Alexander Gerst in space
Alexander Gerst, who has a Masters in Earth Sciences from Victoria University in Wellington, is aboard the International Space Station. He tweeted a picture of Banks Peninsula from high above Earth.
Alexander Gerst, who has a Masters in Earth Sciences from Victoria University in Wellington, is aboard the International Space Station. He tweeted a picture of Banks Peninsula from high above Earth. "Nice view of Banks Peninsula in #NewZealand. Magnificent scenery, used to hike there of-ten...,". He was launched there last month from Kazakhstan and will carry out a number of experiments before returning to Earth in November. Dr Gerst has taken with him a piece of pumice that originated during the Taupo erup-tion almost 1800 years ago.
Dr Gerst, who studied under geophysics professor Martha Savage at the Institute of Geophysics several years ago, asked her to contribute an item to take on the journey and she gave him the rectangular piece of pumice, measuring 2.5cm and weighing just over 14g. "I chose it because it's lightweight and small, and beauti-fully represents the University and the highly regarded earth sciences programme we run here, which Dr Gerst was part of for a time," Professor Savage said. She said being able to provide an item for the flight provided an exciting opportunity for Victoria University to be part of Dr Gerst's first-ever space exploration. "It's al-so a reminder of the kind of things talented students like Dr Gerst go on to achieve with a Victoria University education." After completing his Master's degree at Vic-toria, Dr Gerst gained a PhD in volcanology from the University of Hamburg in Germany. He then joined the European Space Agency and trained as an astronaut.
- APNZ
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