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Roland Lehoucq

“When fiction ignites the spark, science lights up the world.”

Roland Lehoucq
Speaker · Scientist · Astrophysicist
Astrophysicist at CEA Paris-Saclay, Roland Lehoucq is a unique knowledge broker who connects science and fiction through their shared imagination. President of the "Utopiales", he uses popular culture — from Star Wars to Interstellar — to explain actual physics and awaken critical thinking. His lectures transform curiosity into understanding and restore everyone's desire to learn.

Roland Lehoucq

Astrophysicist at CEA Paris-Saclay, Roland Lehoucq is one of the most recognized voices in bridging science, culture, and imagination. A cosmology specialist, he uses physics to create narratives accessible to all without losing rigor. His approach inspires a desire to learn, starting from images, scenes, and questions that everyone already knows. Trained at ENS Ulm and a graduate in physics, he has taught at École Polytechnique and currently teaches at Université Paris Cité, ENS Paris-Saclay, and Sciences Po Rennes. This dual experience as a researcher and educator infuses his interventions with solid references, simple methods, and concrete examples that make complexity understandable.

Since 2012, he has been the president of the international science fiction festival 'Les Utopiales', helping to sustainably bring together scientific communities, artists, and the general public. He has also participated in major exhibitions (Cité des sciences, Palais de la Découverte, Cité de l'Espace) that have marked a generation of visitors. A writer and editor, he has written or directed numerous works that have become references, from 'Doing Science with Star Wars' to 'Scientifiction, - The Physics of the Impossible' (Grand Prix de l'Imaginaire 2025, essay). His writing extends his mission: to transform curiosity into knowledge, and knowledge into shared pleasure.

A long-time popularizer, he has held regular columns in the magazine 'Bifrost', 'Pour la Science', and 'Le Monde'. His style is consistent: starting from a cult scene, asking the right questions, calculating orders of magnitude, and honestly concluding what science allows or invalidates. Distinguished several times (Diderot-Curien Prize, Knight of the Academic Palms, Knight of the Legion of Honor), the asteroid (31387) Lehoucq bears his name in tribute to his involvement in the dissemination and sharing of knowledge. He continues to give lectures across France. His grail: to provide you with a lively, generous, and demanding experience that enhances critical thinking and scientific culture… and that often rekindles the taste for science.

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Will humanity rise to the great challenge of energy?

  • Since the mastery of fire nearly 500,000 years ago, humanity has continuously tamed new forms of energy, multiplying its capabilities and accelerating its development. This energy conquest has allowed the rise of civilizations, exploration, industrialization, and a profound transformation of our territories. But this dynamic, as spectacular as it is, comes at a price: it has gradually shifted the limits of the possible… bringing our actions closer to great natural forces.
  • In this lecture, Roland Lehoucq presents a striking observation: after a century of explosive growth, human activity now weighs on a planetary scale. Urbanization of landscapes, pressure on ecosystems, climate disruptions, environmental pollution… the effects of our energy power are visible everywhere and directly question the sustainability of our trajectory. In other words, the contemporary world bears the mark of an intense exploitation of resources, which forces us to reconsider what it means to "progress".
  • Roland Lehoucq then explores the central question: how to face a future where the exhaustion of fossil resources is no longer a hypothesis but a perspective? What physical constraints and what collective choices does this transitional situation impose? With a clear and accessible scientific approach, he highlights the orders of magnitude, the limits, the frequent illusions, and the realistic options, in order to better understand what awaits us — and what still depends on us.
  • By participating in this event, you will be encouraged to take a step back on our relationship to energy, its impacts, and the possible paths towards a more sustainable model. Astrophysicist and recognized educator, Roland Lehoucq provides solid reference points to clarify the debate, go beyond slogans, and build a thoughtful reflection on the energy future.

Let's talk about science through fiction!

  • We all know scenes from "Star Wars", "Interstellar" or "Avatar"; they amaze us and, sometimes, deceive us. This conference proposes to make them bridges to real physics: what hypotheses, what laws, what numbers lie behind these images that give it so much power?
  • Step by step, Roland Lehoucq dismantles the mechanisms of a lightsaber, a jump into hyperspace, a double planet, or a black hole. The concepts emerge naturally: energy, gravitation, optics, relativity. The audience learns to "read" a scene with a scientific eye.
  • The method is simple and delightful: ask the question, estimate orders of magnitude, confront with the real. We do not judge fiction: we use it as a laboratory for ideas, to test the robustness of our knowledge and sharpen our critical mind.
  • On the way out, everyone leaves with tools: understanding a special effect, detecting an approximation, and – above all – loving science for what it is: an intellectual adventure that often begins with… a good story. What if?

Star Wars: between myth and scientific reality!

  • The "Star Wars" saga is full of iconic objects: lightsabers, X-Wings, the Death Star, ion propulsion ships. This conference invites us to examine these symbols through the lens of physics without killing the magic of the myth: where does the "Force" come from? Can we "build" a lightsaber? Where would Tatooine be located?
  • The exercise is not to say "true/false", but to measure the possible. We calculate, we compare, we discuss: necessary energy, materials, limits. We explore the boundary between the plausible, the improbable, and the impossible – and discover that this is precisely where science becomes captivating.
  • Throughout the sequences, the physical laws awaken: energy conservation, propulsion, gravitation. The spectators become investigators; they learn to quickly model a situation, test a hypothesis, and conclude with intellectual honesty.
  • Result: a fresh perspective on Star Wars…and on the world. Because what we gain in understanding from watching a film, we then reinvest in real life: analyzing information, questioning a number, appreciating the elegance of a well-posed explanation.

Interstellar & Gravity: Physics Takes the Stage

  • "Interstellar" and "Gravity" have imposed unforgettable images: striking weightlessness, credible black hole, time dilation. This conference uses them as catalysts to address orbital mechanics, relativity, light, and matter.
  • You will learn why weightlessness is not "absence of gravity," how an orbit is gained (or lost), and what relativity tells us about spacetime – without unnecessary formalism, but with clear reasoning and meaningful orders of magnitude.
  • The approach does not seek to trap the films; it shows how small narrative liberties allow for telling great ideas in physics. This lucid distancing gives value to the laws of reality, and admiration for the artists' work.
  • Participants leave with a robust conceptual baggage and the joy of having "truly understood" scenes seen a thousand times. And, above all, with the desire to continue to make curiosity, rigor... and wonder dialogue.

Can we really stay "Alone on Mars"?

  • Based on the film "The Martian", this conference examines the concrete challenges of a manned mission: Martian weather, local resources, water production, agriculture, risks, and countermeasures. The scenario becomes a scientific and technical specification document.
  • We reconstruct the survival chain step by step: energy, cycles of matter, daily chemistry, habitat engineering. Each step is an opportunity to correct a common misconception and anchor knowledge in realistic solutions.
  • The objective is not to judge Hollywood, but to open the imagination: what do we lack to make possible what we see on screen? What innovations would be necessary, and at what energy cost? The approach teaches evaluation, prioritization, and decision-making.
  • In the end, "The Martian" becomes a wonderful introduction to "systems" thinking: connecting disciplines, arbitrating constraints, deciding methodically. And Mars stops being a distant backdrop to become a tremendous accelerator of knowledge.

Energy in Science Fiction: From Lightsaber to Interstellar Ship!

  • SF features energy-hungry objects: orbital stations, planetary engineering, interstellar vessels. This conference proposes to turn this into a lively course on "energy hygiene": balances, densities, yields, limits.
  • Starting from famous artifacts, we compare imagination and calculation: what would it take to power a lightsaber? And to reach the stars? The gap between our current capabilities and these fictional exploits becomes a tremendous driver of explanation.
  • Quickly, the discussion opens up to our own uses: how to transform, transport, store? Where are the real margins for maneuver? What common rules to think about energy in the 21st century? We reconcile scientific culture and societal challenges.
  • The audience leaves with simple, quantified, and actionable references to better understand the world – and with, why not, the desire to design more credible fictions… thus more powerful.

Dune: Scientific Decoding with Roland Lehoucq

Roland Lehoucq explores the scientific concepts behind the universe of Dune (planet Arrakis, desert ecology, imaginary technologies) with clarity and humor. A dive that connects real science and fiction, ideal for sci-fi enthusiasts curious to understand what would be possible in reality.

From Gravity to Interstellar: Understanding gravity with science!

This video explores how the films Gravity and Interstellar illustrate (and sometimes distort) the laws of gravity, juxtaposing cinematic fiction with real science. An accessible reflection on Newton, Einstein, and how relativity influences our representations of space.

Star Wars: Scientific Decryption – When an Astrophysicist Analyzes the Saga!

An astrophysicist breaks down the elements of Star Wars to confront them with the laws of physics and modern science, separating the plausible elements from the purely fictional ones. It's an entertaining and enlightening dive for all science fiction fans curious to know what could (or couldn't) exist in reality.

L’énergie, la puissance cachée qui transforme le monde

Roland Lehoucq shows that energy is not just a resource: it measures our physical capacity to transform matter, societies, and the planet. Through striking orders of magnitude, he reveals how much our modern power relies on "mechanical slaves" — and why this energy abundance makes sobriety unavoidable.