A Fishguard man is reaching for the stars, having been made a Fellow of the European Space Agency (ESA) despite battling a debilitating illness which caused him to lose a third of his body weight and put him a year behind in his schooling.

Dr Daniel Billett, a former pupil of Holy Name School Fishguard and Netherwood School Saundersfoot, was made a fellow of the ESA after being offered the post of senior research assistant at Saskachewen University, Canada.

His studies involve using the Canadian Super DARN Radar Array, a global network of scientific radars monitoring conditions in the near-earth space environment.

The radars allow researchers to observe how space weather conditions affect the earth.

Daniel reports to the European Space Agency on a bimonthly basis as well as regularly attending talks at conferences worldwide on behalf of the agency.

Daniel’s route into space included A levels at Pembrokeshire College before going on to study for a Masters degree in Astrophysics at Aberystwyth University.

“I actually only just got the A levels needed to go to Uni in Aberystwyth, after needing to do an extra year, said Daniel.

“I don’t think most of my teachers in Pembrokeshire thought I would get super far, but Dr Helen Coomer at Pembrokeshire College always stood out as someone very supportive and encouraging.”

University was followed by a Phd at Lancaster University where he wrote a thesis entitled The Great Space Weather Washing Machine and was given the Dean’s award for excellence.

Although he has skyrocketed to the top of his field, it hasn’t all been plain sailing; at the age of 14 Daniel was diagnosed with Crohn’s Disease. Over the next four years he spent extensive periods in hospital and lost a third of his body weight in just six months.

Daniel still suffers from Crohn’s, which is incurable and had to take three months off from his Phd to recover from surgery.

“It will always be an uphill battle when you feel held back because you’re sick,” said Daniel. “I feel lucky that I’ve gotten the opportunities I’ve gotten.

“I’ve found that colleges and universities are getting much better at accommodating people with health conditions, whether that’s extra time off or even a free laptop. It’s never been easier to go after the things you’re most interested in.”