Dr. Hermann Albert Ernst Strub was actively involved in space science as a civil servant in the German Federal Ministry for Research and Technology (BMFT) and as a delegate to ESA. He studied physics at Freiburg and Karlsruhe. He lectured from 1956 to 1961, and in 1962 received a doctorate in engineering from the Technical University of Karlsruhe. From 1961 to 1968, he worked as a scientist at the European Communities' Joint Research Centre in Ispra, Italy, subsequently moving to the BMFT’s space technology section, and, in 1973, becoming head of its aeronautical and space programme section. He held various senior positions for the next 25 years, being appointed, towards the end of his career, Director-General, Head of Basic Research, Research Coordination and International Cooperation. He became the German delegate to the ESA Council in 1975 and remained in Council until 1990. He was Vice-Chair from 1984 to 1987, and also chaired two committees during that time, the Industrial Policy Committee (1978-81) and Administrative and Finance Committee (1987 90).