Overview European space pioneers Pierre Auger Pierre Auger was the first Director General of ESRO, serving from 1964 until 1967. He passed away in 1993. Edoardo Amaldi Edoardo Amaldi, the Italian cosmic-ray physicist, was one of the founding fathers of European space research. He passed away in 1989. Herman Bondi Sir Hermann Bondi, an Austrian-born British mathematician and cosmologist, was the second Director General of ESRO, serving from 1967 until 1971. He passed away in 2005. Robert Aubinière General Robert Aubinière was the first Director General of the French space agency, Centre National d'Etudes Spatiales (CNES), from its creation in 1962 until 1972, and second Secretary General of ELDO until 1975. He passed away in 2001. Last update: 16 March 2010