Brussels Airport puts spotlight on space sector

A corridor that passengers at Brussels Airport pass through to collect their luggage has been decorated as a spaceship to put Belgium’s space sector in the spotlight.

Science agency Belspo and the Chancellery of the Prime Minister have decorated the corridor as a 20m-long spaceship, with images of astronauts, the sun, planets and stars.

Belgian astronaut Raphaël Liégeois was at the airport on Friday to inaugurate the corridor. “Belgium is a small country on Earth, but we are big in space,” he said. “Investing in the space sector is important for our industry, to protect the planet, for our autonomy and not least for our young people. We are inspiring them to dream of a career in space.”

"Belgium is a small country on Earth, but we are big in space"

At the end of November, the ministers of the European Space Agency met to discuss the future of the sector and agreed to invest a record 22.1 billion euros. With a contribution of 1.1 billion euros, Belgium is the second largest per capita contributor after Luxembourg.

^{© BELGA PHOTO / VIDEO INE GILLIS}

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