Ten NASA astronauts and two from the United Arab Emirates during their graduation ceremony after two years of training on March 5, 2024 in Houston, USA (AFP / Mark Felix)
After two years of rigorous training, 10 Americans officially became astronauts on Tuesday and are therefore eligible for space missions with NASA, which announced it will immediately open applications for its next promotion.
Two UAE nationals who trained with them also officially graduated at a ceremony in Houston on Tuesday.
Members of the new “The Flies” campaign can now be used as part of the Artemis missions to travel to the International Space Station (ISS), but also to the moon. And why not head to Mars one day.
“You are here because you are extraordinary,” Jim Free, NASA’s associate administrator, said on stage. “You are now ready for a mission. And your missions will transform our understanding of Earth and space.”
The ten lucky winners are engineers, scientists, pilots and even doctors and come from both the military and civilian world. You were selected from more than 12,000 candidates in 2021.
Since then, they have undergone intensive training: simulations of spacewalks in suits in a giant swimming pool, piloting supersonic aircraft, cold survival courses, lessons in Russian and learning how the ISS or the Orion lunar capsule works. ..
New astronaut Chris Birch took to the microphone to share some memories from that time, such as the time the group stood without food after a week of survival training in a remote area of Alabama and shared “one last bag of M&Ms” – – peanut treats.
She thanked the instructors who patiently answered “our endless list of 'what if' questions about our spacesuits.”
“We’re ready,” she insisted.
At the same time, NASA announced Tuesday that it is opening applications for its next promotion. The criteria: You must be American, have a master's degree in a science, technology or engineering discipline and have at least three years of professional experience. Or be a doctor or a pilot.
The application deadline ends on April 2nd.