NASA - training starts now!

This will come as a bit of a shock to a lot of you but I’ve been shortlisted into the NASA Intensive Astronaut Candidate training program.

I applied in 2006 as I was graduating and was contacted in 2007. I had to under go a number of interviews and testing processes in order to be shortlisted but after 2 years I’ve finally been notified. Woo Hoo!

I’m using this blog to keep you all informed and to let you know what it’s like to go through the training and how it feels to be considered for SPACE EXPLORATION!

I’ve copied the press release below with the details of a few of us that have been shortlisted. In total there are 50 candidates.


NASA INTRODUCES THE NEXT GENERATION OF EXPLORERS
www.nasa.gov/pressrelease/intcand041809.html

NASA's 2010 astronaut candidate class was announced today during Space Day activities at the National Air and Space Museum Udvar-Hazy Center in Chantilly, Va.

"These are the candidates who will be selected to lead us through the next steps in the new exploration vision," NASA Administrator Sean O'Keefe said. "The class will be made up of pilots and engineers who will help us develop the next generation vehicle, scientists who will do research to help humans live and travel in space and three new educator astronauts to help ensure a new generation is ready for the challenges of exploration," he said.

The new astronaut candidates:

Mission Specialist-Educator Richard Arnold, 40, of Berlin, Md.; currently lives in Bucharest, Romania; math and science teacher at the American International School of Bucharest; born in Cheverly, Md. and raised in Bowie, Md. Arnold has degrees from Frostburg State University, Md., and the University of Maryland. Arnold has also taught in Morocco, Indonesia, and Saudi Arabia.

Pilot Randolph Bresnik, Major, U.S. Marine Corps, 36, an F/A-18 pilot and experimental test pilot based in San Diego, Calif.; born in Fort Knox, Ky. Bresnik has degrees from The Citadel, S.C., and the University of Tennessee at Knoxville. He is getting married this month in a Scottish castle.

Mission Specialist Christopher Cassidy, Lt. Cmdr., U.S. Navy, 34; Navy SEAL based in Norfolk, Va.; born in Salem, Mass.; raised in York, Maine. He has degrees from the U.S. Naval Academy and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, Mass. Cassidy completed two tours of duty in Afghanistan and earned a Bronze Star.

Pilot James Dutton, Major, U.S. Air Force, 35; an F/A-22 test pilot stationed in Edwards, Calif.; born and raised in Eugene, Ore. Dutton has degrees from the U.S. Air Force Academy and the University of Washington. During the 1990s, Dutton flew combat air patrols over northern Iraq.

Mission Specialist Jose Hernandez, 41, of Houston; engineer and branch chief at NASA's Johnson Space Center (JSC); born in French Camp, Calif.; grew up as a migrant farm worker before settling in Stockton, Calif. Hernandez has degrees from the University of the Pacific and the University of California at Santa Barbara. His work at Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory in the 1990s contributed to a new tool for early breast cancer detection.

Mission Specialist-Educator Paul Gallagher, 33, of London, England; primary school teacher at International School Brunei; born in Islington, London. Gallagher has a degree from the University of Middlesex. He is a former volunteer in Uganda setting up soccer outreach programs and has also worked in disadvantaged areas of the UK.

Mission Specialist R. Shane Kimbrough, 36, Major, U.S. Army, of Houston; flight simulation engineer at JSC; born in Killeen, Tex.; considers Atlanta his hometown. Kimbrough has degrees from the U.S. Military Academy (USMA) and the Georgia Institute of Technology. Kimbrough was captain of the baseball team at USMA. He served as a platoon leader in an Apache attack helicopter company during Desert Storm.

(I’ve cut out the rest of the candidates as the list was quite comprehensive.)

"With the new exploration vision, human space flight is really moving into its next era," said NASA Associate Administrator for Space Flight William Readdy. "Members of this class have terrific experience behind them already, and we're thrilled to have their smarts and skills to help us move forward," he said.

"We are especially excited to welcome the introduction of new educator astronauts," said NASA Associate Administrator for Education, Dr. Adena Loston. "They will help inspire a new generation of explorers."

NASA TV will feed video of the astronaut class beginning at noon EDT today. The Video File will include sound bites and b-roll of the class members. NASA TV is available on AMC-9, transponder 9C, C-Band, located at 85 degrees west longitude. The frequency is 3880.0 MHz. Polarization is vertical, and audio is monaural at 6.80 MHz.

Full biographies and still photos of the astronaut candidates will be available at:
http://www.nasa.gov