Astronaut Chris Hadfield draws from real-life space thrills in debut novel
VANCOUVER (NEWS 1130) — Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield’s next literary adventure is set in the far-off world of science fiction.
The 61-year-old from Ontario, best known for his viral rendition of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” while commanding the International Space Station, has now penned a space thriller called “The Apollo Murders.”
Random House Canada says the story centres on a NASA crew racing against their Soviet rivals to reach the far side of the moon, but someone on-board the Apollo module has “murder on the mind.”
Speaking to NEWS 1130, Hadfield explained why he wanted to delve into the world of sci-fi.
“Science fiction is kind of, like how a little kid sees the world, right? It’s this blend of what already exists and what might exist. And I think we need that type of visualization on the edge of reality, in order to help push ourselves into what we really need to solve the problems of the future,” explains Hadfield.
Listen to the full interview with NEWS 1130’s Kurtis Doering and Canadian astronaut Chris Hadfield:
The thriller will be rooted in the “little-known reality” of the Cold War-era space race and will feature characters both real and imagined.
The well-accomplished Hadfield, who has also worked as a pilot, engineer, and musician, says the goal of his new book is to give readers a practical sense of what life in space is like; A subject he knows well.
“So that they can really get a sense of what it would be like for them there,” says Hadfield. “How they would face the various challenges? How they deal with the imperfections? And then what it would change about them and do to them as a person? It’s hard to do that in a purely factual way, we almost need to tell an entire story.”
The book hasn’t even been released yet but Hadfield says he’s already thinking about a sequel.
The former commander of the International Space Station already has a proven track record as a bestselling author, with previous titles including “An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth,” “You Are Here” and the children’s book “The Darkest Dark.”
“The Apollo Murders” is scheduled to hit shelves on Oct. 12.
-With files from The Canadian Press
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While at CityNews Vancouver, Kurtis wrote, shot, researched, and produced “This Week In Science”; a weekly feature series for TV and radio focusing on the latest developments in science and technology. The series was a finalist at the 2021 Radio Television Digital News Association awards.
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Kurtis has extensive experience covering breaking news events in real time, from local protests, to province-wide wildfire disasters, to terrorist attacks overseas. He was anchoring at CityNews 1130 Vancouver, live and unscripted, at the height of the US Capitol attack on January 6, 2021.
Like many journalists, Kurtis has put in several late nights covering local, provincial, and national elections. During the 2022 Vancouver municipal election, he was stationed at the headquarters of ABC Vancouver candidate Ken Sim, who would go on to be the mayor.
As a reporter, Kurtis helped to earn CityNews 1130 (formerly NEWS 1130) an RTDNA West Region Award for Radio Newscast, Large Market. The winning submission is from February 12, 2019, when winter weather brought traffic chaos to BC’s Lower Mainland.
Aside from being entertaining and informative, the long-running radio segments of “This Week in Science” are a showcase of Kurtis’ research, writing, editing, and news delivery skills. The most recent segments can still be heard online.
Before moving to Vancouver, Kurtis was a reporter and anchor for News Talk 650 in Saskatoon. This is a newscast from March 22, 2016, when Belgium was hit by twin terrorist attacks, the newly-elected Justin Trudeau government released its first federal budget, and former Toronto Mayor Rob Ford died.