Ioonos

IOONOS: Can you tell us what your work involves?

Christophe Bonnal: I work at the CNES (Centre National d’Etudes Spatiales Français), as Senior System Expert in the management of launchers. Thanks to my experience and the fact that I have a very broad perspective, I have a slightly unusual position. My job involves advising and making proposals; for example, I make recommendations in order to keep a project on course. I also have a communication role with the outside world. I travel to all the big European universities and the French engineering schools to meet students and present our activities. Some of them may come and do courses at the CNES, or be recruited at a later stage. Concerning communication, I also act as advisor to the media on the subjects of launchers and space debris.

IOONOS: What has been your career path?

Christophe Bonnal: I left engineering school in Lille in 1983 and since then my career has been entirely devoted to launchers, in industry or with space agencies, involving the various stages in a launcher’s life – from pilot studies to trials.

IOONOS: Tell us about your early experience.

Christophe Bonnal: I began working for Aérospatiale (now EADS Astrium) in 1984, initially on Ariane IV. After three years I moved to the Pilot Study Department, with the same company. That was pure exploration: we had to imagine what future launchers would involve, design reusable launchers, and work on what still seemed a strange craft, the ATV *, developed for the ESA, and for which I was project leader. It all seemed very theoretical to me, and I then wanted to work on more concrete projects and be closer to the reality of a development so I could learn about another side of the industry. So I participated in the development of Ariane V in the industrial architecture team, to improve my knowledge of the trajectories, performances, etc., of a launcher that was already planned and funded, rather than a project that still had a long way to go in the pipeline.

IOONOS: When did you join the French CNES agency?

Christophe Bonnal: In 1992 I stayed in the team in charge of Ariane V, but this time moving to the other side of the programme. At CNES I stopped being the supplier and became the client. I was in charge of system trials, so basically all the trials related to general aspects of the launcher: shocks, vibrations, aerodynamics… including test flights and qualification launches. (After two successful flights a launcher is considered to be ready, or “qualified”, and it is passed on to the production team). When Ariane V qualified in 1998, I returned to my first love, which was pilot studies, which I directed for eight years at CNES. And there, my experience made me more pragmatic. In 2006 I went back to the technical side as assistant to the technical branch, as systems expert, with an overview and a more general approach.

IOONOS: What might launcher pilot studies for an agency involve?

Christophe Bonnal: Oh, it’s huge, going from the short to the long-term: from the tiniest modification of Ariane V to total science-fiction. We imagine lunar launchers or launchers of nano satellites, we work on launchers that are completely reusable, or completely disposable. The idea is to prepare credible projects, with a team of fifteen people. To give you an example, the Ariane 5 ECA* started from a work session and a lot of blank sheets of paper. And it was a little sketch of a Shadock (a cartoon character) that gave us the initial idea. After that, the number of constraints is, of course, very large.

IOONOS: What can one expect in a career in space travel?

Christophe Bonnal: In Europe space travel is a small world; there are about 5,000 of us working on launchers, and nearly everyone knows everyone. We have been completely immersed in Europe for a long time now. Researchers, inventors and industrial production: for us, Europe was a reality before most of the Treaties were signed. This means that English is essential: job interviews and meetings are frequently held in English. You also have to demonstrate extreme mobility: be ready to change company or to work in different departments and in different countries for the same company.

IOONOS: What advice would you give to young people today considering a career in the space sector?

Christophe Bonnal: To only join the profession if you are really passionate about space! You are bound to find an interesting job, but be ready to put in a lot of hours, and the pay isn’t always high. For people entering the industry there is still a great deal to do! Space has a huge amount to offer, and many more dreams and inventions are still to come. Today one could build an entire career on future projects involving Mars and its exploration.

IOONOS: Does space still make you dream?

Christophe Bonnal: I still have dreams about everything, all aspects of space fascinate me. The exploration of the Moon and Mars, space tourism, the use of space to generate electricity, the protection of the Earth against asteroids, monitoring volcanoes and earthquakes, etc. We have to continue to create new space projects and to mobilize the necessary public funds. You have to remember the American conquest of space, the whole country was excited, and every kid wanted to be an astronaut…