HOUSTON, Texas — The newest class of NASA Artemis astronauts could soon be destined to travel beyond our atmosphere after graduating basic training.
As this class graduates, NASA is already accepting applications for the next generation of astronauts as well.
NASA recognized the 10 new graduates at a ceremony at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas on Tuesday, March 5. The graduates are now eligible for flight assignments.
According to NASA, the graduates were selected for the program in 2021 from a pool of over 12,000 applicants. Now, they are "earning their wings" after completing more than two years of basic training including spacewalking, robotics, space station systems and more.
“Congratulations to the newest class of NASA astronauts! We are excited to have a new and diverse set of explorers ready to expand humanity’s reach,” said NASA Administrator Bill Nelson. “Astronauts are pioneers who will help us embark on this new era of exploration, and we need more adventurers ready to join the ranks to explore the cosmos, including future missions to the Moon, on to Mars, and beyond.”
The graduates could be assigned to missions on the International Space Station, future commercial space stations and Artemis campaign missions to the Moon in preparation for Mars, said NASA.
The new astronaut graduates are Nichole Ayers of Colorado Springs, Colorado; Marcos Berríos of Guaynabo, Puerto Rico; Chris Birch of Gilbert, Arizona; Deniz Bunham of Wasilla, Alaska; Luke Delaney of Debary, Florida; Andre Douglas of Chesapeake, Virginia; Jack Hathaway of South Windsor, Connecticut; Anil Menon of Minneapolis, Minnesota; Chris Williams of Potomac, Maryland and Jessica Wittner of Clovis, California.
Two astronauts from the United Arab Emirates, Nora AlMatrooshi and Mohammad AlMulla of the Mohammad Bin Rashid Space Centre, also trained alongside the NASA astronauts and participated in the graduation ceremony, said NASA, continuing the long tradition of international partnership.
NASA said its partnership with the UAE also includes cooperation on the International Space Station, NASA's Artemis missions through the Gateway lunar space station and other activities on Earth and in space that are "supporting groundbreaking science and research".
You can watch the full graduation ceremony at this link.
Interested in becoming an astronaut yourself? There are a few requirements. Namely, you must be a U.S. citizen, have a master's degree in a STEM field such as engineering, biological science or mathematics, have a minimum of three years of related professional experience or 1,000 Pilot-in-Command flight hours and must be able to successfully complete NASA's long-duration flight astronaut physical.
Do you meet the requirements? More information on the application process can be found at this link, and applications can be found at usajobs.gov.
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