Arguably the most famous astronaut since Neil Armstrong, Colonel Chris Hadfield is a heavily decorated astronaut, engineer, and pilot, who has become a worldwide sensation. His rendition of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” has been viewed by over 75 million people online and was called “possibly the most poignant version of the song ever created,” by Bowie himself. Chris is a uniquely experienced leader who shares best practices and tactics on leading teams through complexity and change, while also sharing the marvels and wonders of science and space to everyone he encounters.

Formerly NASA’s director of operations, Chris spent more than three decades working for NASA and the Canadian Space Agency. Throughout his distinguished career, he has flown three space missions, built two space stations, performed two spacewalks, crewed the Shuttle and Soyuz, and, in 2013, commanded the International Space Station for six months. His many awards and recognitions include the Order of Canada, the Meritorious Service Cross, and the NASA Exceptional Service Medal.

Chris is the author of five internationally bestselling books: two non-fiction, An Astronaut’s Guide to Life on Earth and You Are Here; a children’s book, The Darkest Dark, which has been adapted as an award-winning stage play for young audiences; and two fiction books, The Defector and The Apollo Murders, now under contract to become a television series. His third book in the Apollo Murders series, Final Orbit, will be released in October 2025. A musician, Hadfield has also released an album called Space Sessions: Songs from a Tin Can. It is the first album to be recorded in space and includes the video version of David Bowie’s “Space Oddity” that has been seen over 50 million times.

Chris is acclaimed for making outer space accessible to everyone. He is frequently featured on national and global media outlets, and co-created and hosted the internationally acclaimed BBC series Astronauts: Do You Have What It Takes?. He also co-hosted National Geographic’s One Strange Rock, directed by Darren Aronofsky.

An advisor to SpaceX and Virgin Galactic, and chair of the board of the Open Lunar Foundation, Chris was also asked to advise and assist King Charles III in exploring sustainability in space in 2023. He is currently an adjunct professor at the University of Waterloo.