EVANGELOS Odysseas Papathanassiou, conveniently known professionally as Vangelis, is still most noted for his iconic and ground-breaking Academy Award-winning score for the movie Chariots of Fire.

Among his many soundtracks, Vangelis’s work often focuses on exploration and adventure, such as 1492: Conquest of Paradise, Antarctica, Blade Runner, Alexander and China, or perhaps more venturesomely on space travel, such as Albedo 0.39 and Mythodea – Music For The NASA Mission: 2001 Mars Odyssey.

So it was almost inevitable that European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Andre Kuipers should invite the Greek musician to compose a symphony to enhance the film captured from the recent Rosetta space mission.

Carl Walker from ESA comments that the alchemy between Vangelis’s score and the official footage captures how people would feel if they were to see a comet for real in close-up.

Well, this is (thankfully) something few of us will physically experience; however, would-be astronauts could exchange a journey through the Milky Way for a marathon drive on the A1 in the wee small hours to enjoy this exceptionally glorious and celestial album.