Mission 2026, Hetty Helsmoortel

The most striking science news of the past year In 2026, Hetty turned 40. According to the average life expectancy, she is now statistically somewhere in the middle. Urgently time to take stock. Because ever since the day she could read, her existence has been filled with science and curiosity. Collecting stones, drawing robots, or trying to build the most stable sandcastles on the beach of Ostend. But does science also remain that loyal ally in the second half of her life? What if she gets a diagnosis at 75 for which there is no treatment yet? Won't she be angry then, because maybe too much dawdling happened somewhere in 2026? Or just grateful for the things that did progress in that year? Will that latest laundry-folding robot, for which the basis may have been laid in 2026, be a blessing by then… or just an extra appliance that we have to descale? Because have we actually really gained more time since the invention of the dishwasher and the dryer? And does her childlike enthusiasm about the new and ever-further exploration of space - with the moon at the forefront in 2026 - remain intact? Even if that moon might have become a place by then where we have gone to look for as many dreams as raw materials? In Missie 2026, Hetty’s hope, humor, and wonder come together again. She looks at the most striking scientific events of 2026 in her own way. For the sixth time in a row, she wants to send everyone back into the world after the show with zest and a head full of new insights. Photo: KREW Collective