Patch preview: Chris Hadfield

Canada's first astronaut to command the International Space Station will don a guitar pick-shaped patch to represent his long-duration mission and his interest in music, according to the Canadian Space Agency (CSA), which revealed the crest on Thursday. Commemorating Hadfield's Expedition 34/35 mission from December 2012 to June 2013, the emblem's design uses colors and imagery to signal Hadfield's role in Canadian history, including a trio of stars representing his three spaceflights (and his three children), and a blue pool signifying the "need for fresh water conservation" -- one of Hadfield's underlying goals for the mission. As for the pick shape, Hadfield plays guitar (and sings lead vocals) in the all-astronaut band Max Q and in the folk quartet Bandella.