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| Colin Pillinger dies after brain haemorrhage | Colin Pillinger dies after brain haemorrhage |
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| British planetary scientist Colin Pillinger, best known for his 2003 attempt to land a spacecraft on Mars, has died aged 70, his family have said. | British planetary scientist Colin Pillinger, best known for his 2003 attempt to land a spacecraft on Mars, has died aged 70, his family have said. |
| Prof Pillinger was at his home in Cambridge when he suffered a brain haemorrhage and fell into a deep coma. | Prof Pillinger was at his home in Cambridge when he suffered a brain haemorrhage and fell into a deep coma. |
| His family said he later died at Addenbrooke's Hospital without regaining consciousness. | His family said he later died at Addenbrooke's Hospital without regaining consciousness. |
| His death was "devastating and unbelievable", they said in a statement. | His death was "devastating and unbelievable", they said in a statement. |
| Dr David Parker, the chief executive of the UK Space Agency, led the tributes. | Dr David Parker, the chief executive of the UK Space Agency, led the tributes. |
| He told the BBC that Prof Pillinger had played a critical role in raising the profile of the British space programme and had inspired "young people to dream big dreams". | He told the BBC that Prof Pillinger had played a critical role in raising the profile of the British space programme and had inspired "young people to dream big dreams". |
| And Prof Mark Sims, the mission manager on the 2003 Beagle-2 probe, recalled: "Colin was a top-rate scientist. You might not have agreed with him but he always went for what he believed in. It was a privilege to have known him and worked with him both as a friend and colleague." | |
| 'Unfinished business' | 'Unfinished business' |
| Prof Pillinger was the driving force behind Beagle-2, which was built to search for life on Mars. | |
| The little craft was carried piggyback to the Red Planet on a European satellite, but vanished without trace after being dropped off to make its landing. | The little craft was carried piggyback to the Red Planet on a European satellite, but vanished without trace after being dropped off to make its landing. |
| Prof Pillinger continued to push space agencies to complete what he called "unfinished business on Mars", and was sometimes critical of the delays that have seen Europe's follow-up rover mission, ExoMars, slip back to 2018. | |
| Fans took to Twitter on Thursday to pay tribute to the scientist, with author Keith Mansfield calling him a "great advocate" for space and Mars. | Fans took to Twitter on Thursday to pay tribute to the scientist, with author Keith Mansfield calling him a "great advocate" for space and Mars. |
| Phil Ford, a writer on Dr Who, said: "Very sad to see Prof Colin Pillinger has died. A proper British boffin who will be fondly remembered for the Beagle Mars mission." | Phil Ford, a writer on Dr Who, said: "Very sad to see Prof Colin Pillinger has died. A proper British boffin who will be fondly remembered for the Beagle Mars mission." |
| Apollo samples | Apollo samples |
| At the age of 62, Prof Pillinger was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which made it difficult for him to walk. | At the age of 62, Prof Pillinger was diagnosed with multiple sclerosis, which made it difficult for him to walk. |
| He said the illness would not diminish his research, and his motorised buggy was often seen racing around scientific conferences. | He said the illness would not diminish his research, and his motorised buggy was often seen racing around scientific conferences. |
| "Bloody-minded," was how he described his own approach to life. "If I ever said as a child 'I can't do this', my father would always say, 'There's no such thing as can't'," he recalled on the BBC's Desert Island Discs programme. | "Bloody-minded," was how he described his own approach to life. "If I ever said as a child 'I can't do this', my father would always say, 'There's no such thing as can't'," he recalled on the BBC's Desert Island Discs programme. |
| With colleagues at the Open University, where he headed the Department of Physical Sciences until 2005, he was keenly looking forward to this year's Rosetta mission. | With colleagues at the Open University, where he headed the Department of Physical Sciences until 2005, he was keenly looking forward to this year's Rosetta mission. |
| The pan-European venture plans to put a lander on a comet this November, and an OU instrument will help investigate the object's chemistry. | The pan-European venture plans to put a lander on a comet this November, and an OU instrument will help investigate the object's chemistry. |
| "It's important to note that Colin's contribution to planetary science goes back to working on Moon samples from Apollo, as well as his work on meteorites," said Dr Parker. | "It's important to note that Colin's contribution to planetary science goes back to working on Moon samples from Apollo, as well as his work on meteorites," said Dr Parker. |
| "While we still don't know for certain what happened to Beagle-2, I'd say that the project was a turning point in bringing together the space science and industrial communities in the UK - which didn't used to speak with one voice. Beagle-2 wasn't built in Colin's backyard: it was the product of UK brains and hard-work in many companies and universities." | "While we still don't know for certain what happened to Beagle-2, I'd say that the project was a turning point in bringing together the space science and industrial communities in the UK - which didn't used to speak with one voice. Beagle-2 wasn't built in Colin's backyard: it was the product of UK brains and hard-work in many companies and universities." |
| Science advocate | Science advocate |
| For the British media, Prof Pillinger was often the go-to man for a comment when a new piece of space science was published. | For the British media, Prof Pillinger was often the go-to man for a comment when a new piece of space science was published. |
| The press appreciated his straight-talking, and the whiskers and the Bristolian accent just added to his appeal. | The press appreciated his straight-talking, and the whiskers and the Bristolian accent just added to his appeal. |
| He had an especially sharp eye for a good headline, once demonstrating the relatively small scale of Beagle-2 by loading a replica into a supermarket trolley and wheeling it through the car park of the Open University. The footage was picked up by the satirical programme Have I Got News for You? ensuring that news of the mission reached a far wider audience. | He had an especially sharp eye for a good headline, once demonstrating the relatively small scale of Beagle-2 by loading a replica into a supermarket trolley and wheeling it through the car park of the Open University. The footage was picked up by the satirical programme Have I Got News for You? ensuring that news of the mission reached a far wider audience. |
| On the publication of his biography in 2010, My Life On Mars, he recalled an event that made him realise that the lost probe would be his legacy. | On the publication of his biography in 2010, My Life On Mars, he recalled an event that made him realise that the lost probe would be his legacy. |
| "I pulled into the OU car park and there was this huge lorry, a guy delivering a load of bricks - a builder, obviously," he told the BBC. | "I pulled into the OU car park and there was this huge lorry, a guy delivering a load of bricks - a builder, obviously," he told the BBC. |
| "I looked at this guy and I thought 'he's going to take a while', so I dashed in front of him in my car to get into the parking space. Well, the door opened on the lorry and this huge man got out - you could eat your dinner off his hands - and he started walking towards the car. And I thought, 'Bloody hell, I'm going to get thumped'. | "I looked at this guy and I thought 'he's going to take a while', so I dashed in front of him in my car to get into the parking space. Well, the door opened on the lorry and this huge man got out - you could eat your dinner off his hands - and he started walking towards the car. And I thought, 'Bloody hell, I'm going to get thumped'. |
| "Well, he stuffed this huge paw through the window and said, 'You're the man who launched Beagle-2, aren't you? I want to shake your hand, mate'. And that to me says everything. There's nobody in the UK I didn't reach." | "Well, he stuffed this huge paw through the window and said, 'You're the man who launched Beagle-2, aren't you? I want to shake your hand, mate'. And that to me says everything. There's nobody in the UK I didn't reach." |
| Prof John Zarnecki, a colleague at the OU, remembered Colin Pillinger as "a boss, a friend, a rival, a confidant, a fellow football fan and many more". | |
| "Working with Colin was never easy or quiet! But our aims were the same - to do the best science that we possibly could. And with Colin, woe betide anybody or any organisation who got in the way of that objective," he told me. | |
| "Life was never dull - he never fired me (as most of my colleagues claim to have been) but I do remember a particularly fiery meeting at which he accused me of being a traitor (to what I'm not sure I remember). | |
| "I can think of nobody else who could have made Beagle-2 happen - he was so passionate, determined and thick-skinned. | |
| "He refused to work 'by the rules'. Although it was a 'long shot', it definitely could have worked - and I committed myself to the extent of providing an instrument for Beagle-2. The Christmas Day we spent trying to make contact with Beagle-2 was so painful - and so much so for Colin who had invested his very soul - and more - into that effort. He bore it with great dignity. | |
| "Our community will be that much poorer without Colin." | |
| Prof Pillinger was married to Judith with whom he had two children, Shusanah and Nicolas. | Prof Pillinger was married to Judith with whom he had two children, Shusanah and Nicolas. |
| Jonathan.Amos-INTERNET@bbc.co.uk and follow me on Twitter: @BBCAmos |