enjoys mountaineering, diving, climbing and skydiving. Gerst is a licensed radio amateur (KF5ONO) and has participated in several ARISS (Amateur Radio on the International Space Station) educational contacts. In popular culture Some of Gerst's background and appearance is incorporated into the character of Alex Vogel, a German astronaut and part of the crew of the Hermes vessel in the 2015 science-fiction film The Martian. References External links Official home page as a researcher (up until ESA selection) Spacefacts biography of Alexander Gerst 1976 births Living people People from Künzelsau German astronauts Karlsruhe Institute of Technology alumni Victoria University of Wellington alumni University of Hamburg alumni Commanders Crosses of the Order of Merit of the Federal Republic of Germany Recipients of the Order of Merit of Baden-Württemberg 20th-century German scientists 21st-century German scientists German geophysicists Crew members of the International Space Station Commanders of the International Space Station ESA astronauts Spacewalkers