The ESA "traces the history of the European collaborative space programme from its beginnings in the late 1950s to the creation of a single space agency in the early 1970s and up to recent developments, in the light of its main actors and policies."

Krige (PhD, Physical Chemistry, Pretoria, 1965; PhD, Philosophy, Sussex, 1979) is Kranzberg Professor and Director of Graduate Studies, School of History, Technology, and Society. He will attend a ceremony in September in Paris where the 2009 medal will be presented to the Director General of the ESA.