[tiredofcareer]

It is my opinion that Chris Hadfield has done vast amounts more toward popularizing space travel than NASA has in its entire run, the televised moon landings notwithstanding. The general public even got bored of going to the moon after the first few trips, as Apollo 13 dramatizes, but Cmdr. Hadfield has cultivated an enormous, captivated audience for what is arguably routine space travel. (That's not a dig at NASA; it's a compliment to Hadfield.)

That accomplishment is even more notable because while Canada has a space agency, most of the world wouldn't consider Canada "spacefaring" in the broad sense (also not a dig at Canada). That a man challenged himself in his career to become an astronaut without a clear path to orbit, then reached a position where he can bring space travel to YouTube, Reddit, schools, and countless young minds in a new generation with the light touch required to "make it stick" is an accomplishment worthy of immense praise. Maybe a Nobel.

EDIT: Holy cow, this got flagged off the front page in the time it took me to get coffee.

[untog]

It is my opinion that Chris Hadfield has done vast amounts more toward popularizing space travel than NASA has in its entire run

I'm going to give an opinion here that has no evidence- so consider me devil's advocate-ing, I'd love to see contrary evidence. I have long suspected that Chris Hadfield has been phenomenally popular among the tech-inclined, tweeting classes- but has had a far smaller impact on the 'everyday' person.

I do not mean this as a slight to him in any way- I think he has done everything and anything that he could. But the mainstream media seems uninterested- the height of the NASA space faring days was when there were about four TV channels anyone watched- the mindshare it captured is incredibly difficult if not impossible to replicate today. It's very sad.

[tiredofcareer]

Young people are not the mainstream media's target audience, but they are Hadfield's. The obvious undercurrent to his efforts is to get more kids interested in science, engineering, and potentially space travel; mainstream media doesn't get ratings out of that, so it isn't really worth covering for them. This Bowie cover seems to be gaining some steam, though; as another poster mentioned, I've heard about it from several people not in my usual "tech" circle.

Listening to the kids react in wonderment as he demonstrated wringing a towel out in orbit really drove home that he's reaching, and really reaching, the right audience in a way that NASA has struggled with for decades. He is exceedingly well-educated and is probably aware of declining interest in STEM among younger kids and especially declining interest in space travel as a whole. (I don't have data to back that up, just basic anecdotal experience much like you, but it seems true.)

[untog]

I can believe that he has impacted kids. I'd be interested to know how widespread coverage of what he's been doing has been in schools- and how far it extends beyond suburban middle-class kids.

[ywgdana]

Allow me to offer some anecdotal evidence to counter your speculation: in the waiting room at my doctor's office this morning, there were three little old ladies discussing his cover and how he's returning to Earth today.

(Mind you this is Canada where he's perhaps getting more press as a hometown boy done good)

[Tiktaalik]

He definitely gets mainstream attention in Canada. CBC Radio and the National news program often discusses his exploits and the Q radio program interviewed him live.

[cs702]

I second that opinion -- he deserves enormous praise. I must also add that this video -- with a real astronaut staring in awe at the stars and looking longingly at earth -- is one of the most authentic, touching, musical performances I've ever seen.