Astronaut's Battlestar Galactica Starbuck cosplay in space thrills sci-fi convention fans (video)

European space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti floats in weightlessness dressed as actor Katee Sackhoff's Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica on the International Space Station in July 2022.
European space Agency astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti floats in weightlessness dressed as actor Katee Sackhoff's Starbuck from Battlestar Galactica on the International Space Station in July 2022. (Image credit: European Space Agency)

An astronaut on the International Space Station has once again brought cosplay to the cosmos in a new video message to sci-fi fans while dressed as Starbuck from the TV series "Battlestar Galactica."

Astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti of the European Space Agency (ESA) shared the pre-recorded video from the International Space Station with crowds attending FedCon — a science fiction and fantasy conversion held in Germany back in early June. 

Thousands of fans flock to the convention each year to meet stars of sci-fi movies and TV shows, show off their cosplay creations and attend lectures by real-world scientists. 

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To celebrate the 30th anniversary of FedCon, the crowd was presented with a video message from Cristoforetti, dressed as the Viper pilot Kara "Starbuck" Thrace (portrayed by Katee Sackhoff ) from the beloved 2004-2009 TV series "Battlestar Galactica," during one of ESA's talks.

In the video, Cristoforetti sports the iconic look of the character; complete with reverse tank top and shiny dog tags, which were gently floating in microgravity

Along with wishing both attendees and her ESA colleagues well during the convention, Cristoforetti suggests that Starbuck might have been bored with Earth and journeyed back into space, following the show's finale and the character's uncertain future.  

"I haven't seen any Cylons up here yet," Cristoforetti confirmed in the video, giving us all peace of mind that the fictitious villains aren't circling the space station.  

This isn't the first time Cristforetti has taken science fiction into space. During her first mission aboard the ISS back in 2015, Cristoforetti was dressed as coffee-loving Captain Janeway from "Star Trek: Voyager" to celebrate the arrival of the first espresso machine aboard the station. 

Also, in June last month, Cristoforetti perfectly recreated Sandra Bullock's character Dr. Stone from the smash-hit movie "Gravity," gliding effortlessly through the halls of the space station. 

ESA shared Cristoforetti's video message on YouTube with a description that concluded, "While we may not yet have invented a faster-than-light drive as used in Battlestar Galactica, ESA turns science fiction into science fact every day, exploring and studying the near-Earth environment, the solar system, and the universe beyond, to innovate, inform, and inspire."

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Scott Dutfield
Contributor

Scott is a staff writer for How It Works magazine and has previously written for other science and knowledge outlets, including BBC Wildlife magazine, World of Animals magazine, Space.com and All About History magazine. Scott has a masters in science and environmental journalism and a bachelor's degree in conservation biology degree from the University of Lincoln in the U.K. During his academic and professional career, Scott has participated in several animal conservation projects, including English bird surveys, wolf monitoring in Germany and leopard tracking in South Africa.