NASA is actively seeking new astronauts to spearhead upcoming missions to space stations, the Moon, and potentially even Mars.
Recently, the space agency proudly announced its 10 newest astronaut candidates, all poised to embark on these extraordinary journeys in the years ahead:
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Ben Bailey, 38, Charlottesville, Va.
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Lauren Edgar, 40, Sammamish, Wa.
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Adam Fuhrmann, 35, Leesburg, Va.
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Cameron Jones, 35, Savanna, Il.
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Yuri Kubo, 40, Columbus, In.
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Rebecca Lawler, 38, Little Elm, Texas
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Anna Menon, 39, Houston
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Dr. Imelda Muller 34, Copake Falls, N.Y.
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Erin Overcash, 34, Goshen, Ky.
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Katherine Spies, 43, San Diego
Among these exceptional individuals is Anna Menon, a skilled engineer from SpaceX. Notably, Ms. Menon already has experience in low-Earth orbit, having been a crew member on the private Polaris Dawn mission last year aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule. Alongside her crewmate Sarah Gillis, she holds the remarkable record for the highest altitude ever achieved by a female astronaut. This isn’t the first time an astronaut in her family has been selected; her husband, Anil, was part of the previous astronaut class in 2021.
During the announcement ceremony at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Sean Duffy, the acting NASA administrator, expressed his excitement: “One of these 10 could actually be among the first Americans to set foot on the Martian surface, which is incredibly inspiring.”
For the first time in NASA’s history, women make up the majority of the astronaut candidate class, with six out of the ten selections being female.
Texas Senator Ted Cruz acknowledged this shift, proudly mentioning his two teenage daughters.
He stated, “I’m particularly proud of all the women here, and the fact that with the Artemis program, America is set to land the first woman on the Moon in human history.”
Among the new class, seven candidates boast military service, including four of the six women. Three individuals also bring prior experience working with NASA. Notably, Navy pilot Erin Overcash trained with the U.S. women’s rugby team, while Yuri Kubo, an engineer specializing in hydrogen energy, was a professional ultimate Frisbee player in Indianapolis.
Dr. Imelda Muller, an anesthesiologist and former Navy lieutenant, shared that her journey began with an interest in diving medicine, which eventually led her to work at NASA’s Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory—a massive underwater training facility where astronauts practice spacewalks.
She explained, “All the aspects I loved about diving seamlessly translated to space, making me feel completely at home and ultimately inspiring me to apply.”
This marked her second attempt at selection. By the time she received an invitation for a second round of interviews, the prospect of becoming an astronaut felt increasingly real.
In a humorous twist, she actually missed the crucial phone call from Joe Acaba, the head of NASA’s astronaut office, because she was deeply engrossed in studying for her medical board exams. “By the time I realized I had missed the call, it was already one or two o’clock in the morning,” she recounted.
Upon calling back the next morning, she received the thrilling news. Dr. Muller recalled, “I think the most memorable part is when he asks if you still want the job. At that moment, saying no is simply unimaginable.”
These individuals are officially designated as “astronaut candidates” and will undergo an intensive two-year training program to become full-fledged astronauts. Their curriculum will include learning to pilot NASA’s T-38 jet planes and, given Russia’s key partnership in the International Space Station, they will also master the Russian language.
Currently, a common assignment for NASA astronauts involves missions to the International Space Station.
However, NASA’s ambitions stretch much further with the Artemis program, initially launched during the first Trump administration, which aims to return American astronauts to the lunar surface. The upcoming Artemis II mission, slated for early next year, will see four astronauts orbit the Moon without landing, before safely returning to Earth.
This historic journey will mark the first time astronauts venture beyond low-Earth orbit since the conclusion of the Apollo Moon landings in 1972.
Artemis III, tentatively set for 2027 but likely to be pushed to 2028 or beyond, plans to land two NASA astronauts in the Moon’s south polar region. Even more ambitious, missions to Mars are on the horizon, though initial trips aren’t anticipated until at least the 2030s.
Even with the anticipated retirement of the International Space Station in 2030, NASA astronauts will continue to operate in low-Earth orbit, collaborating with commercial space stations currently under development. Furthermore, NASA is developing Gateway, an orbital outpost around the Moon, which will serve as a crucial staging point for future lunar surface missions.
NASA traditionally opens applications for its astronaut corps every few years. This latest intake represents the 24th group, a lineage that began in 1959 with the seven military pilots selected for Project Mercury.
Notably, this class was selected following Donald J. Trump’s return to the presidency in January, a period during which the federal government, including NASA, dismantled many of its diversity initiatives.
The application window for this astronaut class opened approximately eighteen months prior, during the Biden administration. At that time, NASA actively sought a broad and diverse pool of applicants, attracting over 8,000 submissions.
During the Biden administration, April Jordan, then the NASA official overseeing the selection process, and Victor Glover, an astronaut assigned to Artemis II, spearheaded a media campaign to highlight the diversity within NASA’s astronaut corps. Both Ms. Jordan and Mr. Glover are Black.
In a past interview, Mr. Glover emphasized the rich diversity of backgrounds among current astronauts, noting that the proportion of Black astronauts surpassed that of Black individuals in the wider science and technology workforce.
He proudly stated, “Our office reflects this intentionality, as we actively consider our biases and their potential impact on hiring decisions. I believe that’s a significant triumph.”
Despite these past efforts, the most recent group of astronaut candidates appears to exhibit less racial diversity compared to previous selections.
Former NASA astronaut Garrett Reisman commented, “You just have to look at the picture,” adding that the higher number of women was “very encouraging.”
A NASA spokesman confirmed that Yuri Kubo’s father is Japanese, but noted that the racial and ethnic backgrounds of the other astronaut candidates were not publicly available.
While Dr. Reisman was not directly involved in this specific selection process, he had participated in previous ones. He noted that the final pool of approximately 100 candidates is always exceptionally qualified, and in the past, racial and ethnic diversity played a role in the ultimate choices.
Dr. Reisman concluded by emphasizing, “One of our greatest superpowers is inspiring children to believe they can achieve these dreams. I fear it will be more challenging to fulfill that role if we lack representation from all American communities.”