(There are at least two current MEPs who have been in space, but I will grant you that few people in most EU member-states can name their own MEP, let alone any of the others elected from their country).
Certainly there are many U.S. and Canadian astronauts who have never been anything close to well known public figures, but both sets certainly have enjoyed state propaganda (even on the official state broadcaster): https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/canada-s-astronauts-1.875... (for example)
Perhaps "grand scheme" implies international name recognition?
How soon Chris Hadfield's international prominence fades away is an open question; he certainly appears in the UK often enough (he was a "get" -- as in an invited guest the production staff felt fortunate to have present -- on more than one of the the annual BBC astronomy shows put together by Brian Cox and Dara Ó Briaian) and he has been on a number of other broadcasts as part of an "outreach" programme. You yourself may well remember him from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaOC9danxNo
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Marc_Garneau and https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Julie_Payette
respectively the first Canadian and just one of the twelve Canadians to have been in space.
How about Spain? Recently: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pedro_Duque
(There are at least two current MEPs who have been in space, but I will grant you that few people in most EU member-states can name their own MEP, let alone any of the others elected from their country).
One might also compare John Glenn, who while alive, was certainly well known in the USA: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Glenn
Certainly there are many U.S. and Canadian astronauts who have never been anything close to well known public figures, but both sets certainly have enjoyed state propaganda (even on the official state broadcaster): https://www.cbc.ca/news/technology/canada-s-astronauts-1.875... (for example)
Perhaps "grand scheme" implies international name recognition?
How soon Chris Hadfield's international prominence fades away is an open question; he certainly appears in the UK often enough (he was a "get" -- as in an invited guest the production staff felt fortunate to have present -- on more than one of the the annual BBC astronomy shows put together by Brian Cox and Dara Ó Briaian) and he has been on a number of other broadcasts as part of an "outreach" programme. You yourself may well remember him from https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KaOC9danxNo