David Saint-Jacques

David Saint-Jacques OC OQ FRCGS (Quebec French: [davɪd sẽɪ̯̃nʒã(ŋ)k̚], French pronunciation: [david sɛ̃ʒak]; born 6 January 1970) is a Canadian astronaut with the Canadian Space Agency (CSA). He is also an astrophysicist, engineer, and a physician.

In December 2018, he launched to the International Space Station, as flight engineer on Expeditions 57, 58 and 59; he returned to Earth on 25 June 2019.

Saint-Jacques was selected in May 2009 by the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) as one of two CSA astronaut positions, after a long process selection attended by 5,351 candidates, and moved to Houston to be one of 14 members of the 20th NASA astronaut class. He then graduated from Astronaut Candidate Training that included scientific and technical briefings, intensive instruction in International Space Station systems, extravehicular activity (EVA), robotics, physiological training, T-38 flight training, Russian language and water and wilderness survival training. Since graduation, he has been assigned to the Robotics Branch of the Astronaut Office.

On 19 September 2011, NASA announced that Saint-Jacques would serve as an aquanaut aboard the Aquarius underwater laboratory during the NEEMO 15 undersea exploration mission from 17–30 October 2011. Delayed by stormy weather and high seas, the mission began on 20 October 2011. On the afternoon of 21 October, Saint-Jacques and his crewmates officially became aquanauts, having spent over 24 hours underwater. NEEMO 15 ended early on 26 October due to the approach of Hurricane Rina.

In 2013, Saint-Jacques served as cavenaut into the ESA CAVES training in Sardinia, alongside Soichi Noguchi, Andreas Mogensen, Nikolai Tikhonov, Andrew Feustel and Michael Fincke.

In May 2016 Saint-Jacques was selected as a member of ISS Expedition 58/59, which at the time was scheduled to start in November 2018.

On 3 December 2018, Saint-Jacques launched to the ISS on board Soyuz MS-11, alongside commander Oleg Kononenko and fellow flight engineer Anne McClain. He became a member of the Expedition 57 crew for two weeks before transferring to Expedition 58, which officially started on 20 December 2018 when the Expedition 57 crew left the station. Saint-Jacques, Kononenko and McClain subsequently transferred to Expedition 59 on 14 March 2019 with the arrival of Soyuz MS-12.

On 8 April 2019, Saint-Jacques conducted his first spacewalk, becoming the fourth Canadian astronaut to take part in an EVA and the first to do so in 12 years. The spacewalk lasted roughly seven hours.