Portal:Space exploration/Biography/Week 44 2007

Dirk Dries David Damiaan Frimout (Ph.D.) (born March 21, 1941 in Poperinge, Belgium) is an astrophysicist and was the first Belgian in space.

Frimout flew as a payload specialist on STS-45 Atlantis (March 24 to April 2, 1992). STS-45 was launched from and returned to land at the Kennedy Space Center, Florida. It was the first Spacelab mission dedicated to NASA's Mission to Planet Earth. During the nine-day flight, the crew aboard Atlantis operated twelve experiments. At mission conclusion, Frimout had traveled 3.2 million miles in 143 Earth orbits and logged over 214 hours in space.

His flight made him instantaneously very famous in Belgium and triggered what was called the Frimout-mania. Prince Philippe of Belgium talked with him when he was in space and a ticker tape parade was organized when he came back to Belgium.

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