Dr Matt Taylor apologises for controversial 'sexist' shirt worn after Rosetta mission comet landing
The garment featured a collage of semi-naked women
Your support helps us to tell the story
From reproductive rights to climate change to Big Tech, The Independent is on the ground when the story is developing. Whether it's investigating the financials of Elon Musk's pro-Trump PAC or producing our latest documentary, 'The A Word', which shines a light on the American women fighting for reproductive rights, we know how important it is to parse out the facts from the messaging.
At such a critical moment in US history, we need reporters on the ground. Your donation allows us to keep sending journalists to speak to both sides of the story.
The Independent is trusted by Americans across the entire political spectrum. And unlike many other quality news outlets, we choose not to lock Americans out of our reporting and analysis with paywalls. We believe quality journalism should be available to everyone, paid for by those who can afford it.
Your support makes all the difference.Dr Matt Taylor, part of the team behind the pioneering Rosetta mission, has apologised for wearing a bowling shirt featuring images of women wearing bondage gear and wielding guns.
The British physicist donned the eye-catching but controversial garment as he watched the European Space Agency's Philae lander successfully separate from the Rosetta spacecraft to land on a comet on Wednesday.
Speaking at a press briefing on Friday, Taylor said: “The shirt I wore this week - I made a big mistake and I offended many people. And I'm very sorry about this.”
He broke down in tears following his expression of regret.
Philae touched down after a 10-year, four billion-mile journey through space in an achievement hailed as one of the greatest in science – but many Twitter users appeared more concerned by Taylor’s clothes and tattoos.
One user tweeted: “Dr Matt Taylor is what every scientist should look like – rad shirt, sleeve tattoos. Rad.”
But among the enthusiasm there were reservations:
The Guardian summed up the criticism by publishing a piece by Alice Bell entitled “Why women in science are annoyed at Rosetta mission scientist's clothing”. It said that: “ESA can land their robot on a comet. But they still can’t see misogyny under their noses.”
Taylor wore a non-descript navy-blue ESA hoodie to express his remorse.
Scientists hope the probe will yield insights into the origins of our Solar System.
Join our commenting forum
Join thought-provoking conversations, follow other Independent readers and see their replies
Comments