This is a list of astronauts by year of selection: people selected to train for a human spaceflight program to command, pilot, or serve as a crew member of a spacecraft. Until recently, astronauts were sponsored and trained exclusively by governments, either by the military or by civilian space agencies. However, with the advent of suborbital flight starting with privately funded SpaceShipOne in 2004, a new category of astronaut was created: the commercial astronaut.
While the term astronaut is sometimes applied to anyone who trains for travels into space—including scientists, politicians, journalists, and tourists—this article lists only professional astronauts, those who have been selected to train as a profession. This includes national space programs and private industry programs which train and/or hire their own professional astronauts.
More than 500 people have trained as astronauts. A list of everyone who has flown in space can be found at List of space travelers by name.
North American X-15 Pilots Group (USA)edit
Fourteen pilots were directly involved with the X-15, although only twelve actually flew the vehicles. There was no formal selection process, since everyone chosen was already a qualified test pilot.
Scott Crossfield and Alvin White were the prime and backup North American Aviation test pilots who first became involved with the project. Air Force Captains Iven Kincheloe (prime pilot) and Robert White (backup) were assigned to the X-15 in 1957. When Kincheloe was killed in an accident through a different rocket aircraft program, White became prime pilot and Captain Robert Rushworth became his backup. The first NASA pilots were Joseph Walker and Neil Armstrong. Lieutenant Commander Forrest S. Petersen represented the Navy.
Walker and Armstrong were eventually replaced by NASA pilots John B. McKay (1960), Milton Thompson (1963) and William H. Dana (1965). White and Rushworth were succeeded by Captain Joe Engle (1963), Captain William Joseph Knight (1964) and Major Michael Adams (1966). The Navy selected Lieutenant Lloyd Hoover (1924–2016[1]) as Peterson's replacement, though he never trained or flew.[2]
As of 2023[update], the only surviving X-15 pilot is Joe Engle.
Nine test pilots from the National Advisory Committee for Aeronautics (NACA), the United States Air Force (USAF), North American Aviation (NAA), and Douglas Aircraft Corporation were selected for the Man in Space Soonest project, a USAF initiative to put a man in space before the Soviet Union did. The project was cancelled on August 1, but two of these men would later reach space: Walker made two X-15 flights above 100 kilometers in 1963; and Neil Armstrong joined NASA in 1962 and flew in Project Gemini and Apollo, becoming the first human to set foot on the Moon at 02:56 UTC July 21, 1969.[3]
The last surviving member of this group was Neil Armstrong; he died in 2012.
The first group of astronauts selected by NASA were for Project Mercury in April 1959. All seven were military test pilots, a requirement specified by President Eisenhower to simplify the selection process. All seven eventually flew in space, although one, Deke Slayton, did not fly a Mercury mission due to a medical disqualification, instead flying a decade later on the Apollo–Soyuz mission. The other six each flew one Mercury mission. For two of these, Scott Carpenter and John Glenn, the Mercury mission was their only flight in the Mercury/Gemini/Apollo era. Glenn later flew on the Space Shuttle.
Three of the Mercury astronauts, Gus Grissom, Gordon Cooper and Wally Schirra, also each flew a mission during the Gemini program. Alan Shepard was slated to fly Mercury 10 before its cancellation and was the original commander for the Gemini 3 mission, but did not fly due to a medical disqualification. After surgery to correct the problem, he later flew as commander of Apollo 14. He was the only Mercury astronaut to go to the Moon.
Wally Schirra was the only astronaut to fly into space on all three types of spacecraft, though Gus Grissom was scheduled to be first to complete that feat before he died in a fire on Apollo 1 during launchpad training. Gordon Cooper was a backup commander for Apollo 10, the "dress rehearsal" flight for the lunar landing, and would have commanded another mission—likely to have been Apollo 13, according to the crew rotation—but was bumped from the rotation after a disagreement with NASA management.
Collectively, at least one member of the Mercury Seven flew on every NASA class of human-rated spacecraft (but neither the Skylab nor ISS space stations) through the end of the 20th century: Mercury, Gemini, Apollo, and the Space Shuttle.
The last surviving member of this group was John Glenn; he died in 2016.
In April 1960, seven men were secretly chosen for the Dyna-Soar program. Armstrong had previously been part of the MISS program. Armstrong and Dana left the program in the summer of 1962.
The last surviving member of this group was William H. Dana; he died in 2014.
On March 12, 1962, a group of five civilian women with parachuting experience was added to the cosmonaut training program. Only Tereshkova would fly. A leading Soviet high-altitude parachutist, 20-year-old Tatyana Kuznetsova was, and remains, the youngest person ever selected to train for spaceflight.
September 17 – NASA Group 2 – The Next Nine, akaThe Nifty Nine, The New Nine (USA)
A second group of nine astronauts was selected by NASA in September 1962. All of this group flew missions in the Gemini program except Elliot See, who died in a flight accident while preparing for the Gemini 9 flight. All of the others also flew on Apollo, except for Ed White, who died in the Apollo 1 launchpad fire.
Three of this group, McDivitt, Borman and Armstrong, made single flights in both Gemini and Apollo. Four others, Young, Lovell, Stafford and Conrad, each made two flights in Gemini and at least one flight in Apollo. Young and Lovell both made two Apollo flights. Conrad and Stafford also made second flights in Apollo spacecraft, Conrad on Skylab 2 and Stafford in Apollo–Soyuz.
Six of this group, Borman, Lovell, Stafford, Young, Armstrong and Conrad, made flights to the Moon. Lovell and Young went to the Moon twice. Armstrong, Conrad, and Young walked on the Moon. McDivitt was later Apollo Program Director and became the first general officer and would have been either the prime LM Pilot or backup commander for Apollo 14, but left NASA due to a conflict between Alan Shepard and Deke Slayton. John Young also later flew on the Space Shuttle (STS-1 and STS-9) and would retire from NASA in 2004, 42 years after becoming an astronaut. He was both the first and last of his group to go into space.
September 19 – Dyna-Soar Group 2 (USA)
On September 19, 1962, Albert Crews (born 1929) was added to the Dyna-Soar program and the names of the six active Dyna-Soar astronauts were announced to the public.
While four members of Group 3 died in accidents before ever reaching space—Chaffee in the Apollo 1 fire, Bassett, Freeman and Williams in crashes of NASA T-38jet trainers—the other ten all flew on the Apollo program. Aldrin, Bean, Cernan and Scott walked on the Moon. Five of them: Aldrin, Cernan, Collins, Gordon and Scott also flew missions during the Gemini program. Cernan would be the only astronaut from this group to fly to the Moon twice, being assigned to both Apollo 10 and Apollo 17, while Bean would command the Skylab 3 mission.
1964edit
January 25 – Air Force Group 2 Supplemental (USSR)
In 1965, three civilian journalists, Yaroslav Golovanov, Yuri Letunov, Mikhail Rebrov, were selected for cosmonaut training in preparation for flight on a Voskhod mission. When the Voskhod program was canceled, Golovanov and Letunov were dismissed. Rebrov, on the other hand, stayed with the space program as a journalist until 1974.
June 1 – Medical Group 2 (USSR)
Three physicians were selected for the long-duration Voskhod flights: Yevgeni Illyin, Aleksandr Kiselyov, Yuri Senkevich. All were subsequently canceled to make way for the Soviet Moon program and dismissed at the beginning of the following year.
Graveline and Michel left NASA without flying in space. Schmitt walked on the Moon with Apollo 17. Garriott, Gibson and Kerwin all flew to Skylab. Garriott also flew on Space Shuttle flight STS-9, becoming the first Amateur radio operator (callsign W5LFL) to operate from orbit.
October 28 – Air Force Group 3 (USSR)
Boris Belousov, Vladimir Degtyarov, Anatoli Fyodorov, Yuri Glazkov, Vitali Grishchenko, Veygeni Khludeyev, Leonid Kizim, Pyotr Klimuk, Gennadi Kolesnikov, Aleksandr Kramarenko, Mikhail Lisun, Aleksandr Petrushenko, Vladimir Preobrazhensky, Valery Rozhdestvensky, Gennadi Sarafanov, Ansar Sharafutdinov, Vasili Shcheglov, Aleksandr Skvortsov, Eduard Stepanov, Valeri Voloshin, Oleg Yakovlev, Vyacheslav Zudov
This cosmonaut group was selected for participation in five separate Soyuz programmes that the USSR was running. These included military programs—with and without the Almaz/Salyutspace stations—and two lunar programs, only one of which aimed at an actual lunar landing. In the end, only the orbital program and the space station program went ahead. Few of the cosmonauts from this group ever were given the chance to fly.
This group was selected for training for the US Air Force's Manned Orbiting Laboratory (MOL) program. Of this group, only Truly transferred to NASA after the cancellation of the MOL program and later flew on the Space Shuttle. In 1989, Truly became the first astronaut to be NASA Administrator.
Veteran astronaut John Young christened this group the "Original Nineteen", in parody of the original seven Mercury astronauts.[4] Roughly half of them flew in the Apollo program, while others flew during Skylab and the Space Shuttle, with Brand also flying on the American half of the Apollo–Soyuz Test Project in 1975. Engle was the only NASA astronaut to have earned his astronaut wings before his selection.
Two of this group never flew into space: Givens was killed in a car accident in 1967, and Bull resigned from the Astronaut Corps in 1968 after discovering he had pulmonary disease. Engle, Lind, and McCandless were the only ones from this group who never flew an Apollo spacecraft; Brand, Haise, Lousma, Mattingly, and Weitz all flew both an Apollo and a Shuttle (though Haise only flew the Approach and Landing Tests in the Shuttle program, not into space).
This group was selected for training for the US Air Force's MOL program. All transferred to NASA after the MOL program was canceled and all five flew on the Space Shuttle as pilot astronauts.
As of 2024, the only surviving member is Robert Crippen.
The last surviving member of this group was Vitali Sevastyanov; he died in 2010.
February – Soviet crewed lunar programs cosmonauts in two training groups (USSR)
First group: commanded by Vladimir Komarov (Gagarin, Nikolayev, Bykovskiy, Khrunov; Engineer – Cosmonauts: Gorbatko, Grechko, Sevastyanov, Kubasov, Volkov).
Second group: commanded by Alexei Leonov (Popovich, Belyayev, Volynov, Klimuk; Engineer – Cosmonauts: Makarov, Voronov, Rukavishnikov, Artyukhin).
May 7 – Air Force Group 4 (USSR)
Vladimir Alekseyev, Vladimir Beloborodov, Mikhail Burdayev, Sergei Gaidukov, Vladimir Isakov, Vladimir Kovalyonok, Vladimir Kozelsky, Vladimir Lyakhov, Yuri Malyshev, Viktor Pisarev, Nikolai Porvatkin, Mikhail Sologub
May 22 – Academy of Sciences Group (USSR)
Mars Fathulin, Rudolf Gulyayev, Ordinard Kolomitsev, Vsevolod Yegorov, Valentin Yershov
This group was selected for training for the US Air Force's MOL program. Lawrence was the first African-American to be chosen as an astronaut, but was killed in a jet accident before the MOL program was canceled in 1969. Had Lawrence not died, he would have been, if accepted by NASA, the first African-American astronaut candidate, predating Guion Bluford, Ronald McNair and Frederick Gregory by nine years. Peterson transferred to NASA in 1969 after the MOL cancellation and would fly on the Space Shuttle. Herres would later become the first Vice Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff under the Goldwater–Nichols Act in 1987.
As of 2023, the only surviving member is James Abrahamson.
October 4 – NASA Group 6 – XS-11(The Excess Eleven) (USA)
This second group of scientist-astronauts were assigned as support crew members for the last three Apollo missions or as backup crew members for Skylab.
Chapman, Holmquest, Llewellyn, and O'Leary resigned from NASA before the end of the Apollo program, and the rest of the group members eventually flew as mission specialists during the Space Shuttle program. With his flight on STS-80 at the age of 61, Musgrave held the title of "oldest astronaut" prior to John Glenn's second flight. England resigned from NASA in 1972 but rejoined the astronaut corps in 1979.
This group is all USAF MOL astronauts who transferred to NASA after the cancellation of the MOL program in 1969. All flew on early Space Shuttle flights. Truly, in 1989, would become the first astronaut to be NASA Administrator, holding the post until 1992.
September 10 – Civilian Engineer Group (USSR)
Anatoli Demyanenko, Valeri Makrushin, and Dmitri Yuyukov.
Chai Hongliang, Dong Xiaohai, Du Jincheng, Fang Guojun, Hu Zhanzi, Li Shichang, Liu Chongfu, Liu Zhongyi, Lu Xiangxiao, Ma Zizhong, Meng Senlin, Shao Zhijian, Wang Fuhe, Wang Fuquan, Wang Quanbo, Wang Rongsen, Wang Zhiyue, Yu Guilin, Zhang Ruxiang
Protchenko was removed from the squad for health reasons, Ivanov was killed in the crash of a MiG-27 during test pilot training and Kadenyuk was removed from the squad over marital issues (but accepted back into the Cosmonaut Detachment in 1988). Vasyutin concealed a medical condition from doctors that resulted in his falling ill during the Soyuz T-14/ Salyut 7 EO-4 flight causing the premature termination of the mission 4 months early. This resulted in more stringent cosmonaut medical checks which Moskalenko and Saley failed.[8]
Due to the long delay between the last Apollo mission and the first flight of the Space Shuttle in 1981, few astronauts from the older groups stayed with NASA—though some did, including John Young. Thus, in 1978, a new group of 35 astronauts was selected after 9 years without new astronauts, including the first American female astronauts, with one of them, Judith Resnik, also being the first Jewish American astronaut, as well as the first African-American astronauts to fly, Guion Bluford and Frederick D. Gregory (the first black astronaut was Robert Henry Lawrence Jr), and the first Asian-American, Ellison Onizuka. Bob Stewart was the first Army astronaut to be selected (almost 19 years after the original Mercury Seven). Since then, a new group has been selected roughly every two years.
Two different astronaut groups were formed: pilots and mission specialists. Additionally, the Shuttle Program has payload specialists who are selected for a single mission and are not part of the astronaut corps—mostly scientists, with a few politicians, and many international astronauts.
Of the first of the post-Apollo group, Sally Ride would become the first American woman in space (STS-7). Later, she would fly with Kathryn Sullivan on a Shuttle flight in which Sullivan would become the first American woman to perform an EVA. Dr. Thagard, who flew with Ride on STS-7, would later become the first American to be launched on a Russian rocket (Soyuz TM-21 or "Mir-18") to the Mir space station, while Shannon Lucid would serve on Mir for slightly over six months, breaking all American space duration records (both the Skylab 4 record and Thagard's) from 1996 to 1997 until Sunita Williams, who was selected 20 years later, broke Lucid's record.
Of this group, Scobee, Resnik, Onizuka, and McNair would perish in the Challenger Disaster. Of the astronauts chosen, Anna Fisher remained on active duty the longest, retiring in 2017 (although her tenure included an extended leave of absence from 1989 to 1996), while Robert Gibson and Rhea Seddon became the first active-duty astronauts to marry (both are now retired). Shannon Lucid's tenure was unbroken from 1978 until she announced her retirement in 2012. In later years she served as a space shuttle CAPCOM, up to the final day of the final shuttle mission. After the Challenger disaster, Sally Ride would serve on both the Rogers Commission and the Columbia Accident Investigation Board.
Frank J. Casserino, Jeffrey E. Detroye, Michael A. Hamel, Terry A. Higbee, Daryl J. Joseph, Malcolm W. Lydon, Gary E. Payton, Jerry J. Rij, Paul A. Sefchek, Eric E. Sundberg, David M. Vidrine, John B. Watterson, Keith C. Wright
Of this group, only Payton ever flew into space, as a Payload Specialist aboard a dedicated Department of Defense Shuttle flight.
Of this group, Franklin Chang-Diaz would become the first Hispanic-American in space, Michael Smith would perish in the Challenger disaster, and John Blaha would fly aboard the Mir space station. Both Jerry Ross and Chang-Diaz currently jointly hold the record of number of crewed spaceflights flown, at seven. Charles Bolden was chosen in 2009 to become the second NASA astronaut and the first African-American to the post of NASA Administrator on a full-time basis (although Frederick Gregory, who is also African-American and a former Shuttle commander, held the post on a temporary basis between the departure of Sean O'Keefe and the appointment of Michael Griffin in 2005). The announcement, made a day before the conclusion of the STS-125 flight to the Hubble Space Telescope, was coincidental, because Bolden was the pilot on the telescope's deployment flight in 1990.
July 30 – LII–1/IMBP–3/MAP/NPOE-5/AN–2 Cosmonaut Group (Soviet Union)[10]
Chrétien and Baudry would become the first Frenchmen in space. Chrétien flew with Soviets to Salyut 7 in 1982, and Baudry on Space Shuttle STS-51-G flight in 1985. Chrétien would later fly to the Space Station Mir and would become a Shuttle mission specialist in the 1990s.
Jones was killed in the September 11 attacks as a passenger aboard American Airlines Flight 11. Of this group, only Pailes ever flew in space, aboard a dedicated Department of Defense Shuttle mission as a Payload Specialist.
This first Canadian astronaut group was selected by the National Research Council and were transferred to the Canadian Space Agency (CSA) when it was created in 1989. All the astronauts flew on the US Space Shuttle by 1997 except Ken Money, who resigned from CSA in 1992.
1984edit
February 15 – NPOE–6 Cosmonaut Group (Soviet Union)
Of this group, William Shepherd would become the commander of the first International Space Station crew (Expedition 1). James Wetherbee would become the only person to command five spaceflight missions. Sonny Carter died in 1991 in a plane crash while on NASA business.
June 12 – The third group of test pilots for the project "Buran" – Gromov Flight Research Institute group (USSR)
Although selected to fly on the Space Shuttle, none of the group members flew due to the Challenger disaster of 1986. Bhat was assigned to a shuttle flight that was cancelled in the wake of Challenger.
McAuliffe and Morgan were selected as the prime and backup Payload Specialists for the STS-51-L mission in 1985. McAuliffe was killed in the Challenger disaster, 73 seconds after liftoff. Morgan would later join the NASA Astronaut Corps in 1998. She flew on the STS-118 mission in 2007, 21 years after Challenger.
January 2 – The fourth group of test pilots for the project "Buran" – Gromov Flight Research Institute group (USSR)
Sergey Tresvyatski and Yuri Schaeffer.
Per the June 5, 1987 decision of the Interdepartmental Qualification Committee (IAC), all Buran test pilots were awarded the qualification test cosmonaut.
The group's informal nickname is an acronym for "George Abbey Final Fifteen." Of this group, Mae Jemison would become the first female African-American in space, while Michael Foale would serve on extended missions to both Mir and the International Space Station, as well as a mission to service the Hubble Space Telescope.
At the time of the Columbia accident in 2003, William Readdy was Associate Administrator for Space Flight and Kenneth Bowersox was commanding the Expedition 6 crew on the ISS. Chilton, after leaving NASA, became the first NASA astronaut to become a full General in the US Air Force (Lt. Gen. Thomas Stafford, USAF, and VADM Richard Truly, USN were three-star officers) and held the position of commander, US Strategic Command.
22 March – The last group of test pilots for the Buran project – Gromov Flight Research Institute group) (USSR)
Yuri Prikhodko
Officially, the cosmonaut corps LII (Letno-ispitatelny Institut = Flight Research Institute) ceased to exist in 2002, having gone through a long period of inactivity since the closure of the Buran program in 1993. Of all those selected and trained, only two cosmonauts traveled to space: Igor Volk and Anatoly Levchenko. More information about the Buran space flight program and Soyuz-Savior, the Soyuz-spasatel program and its cosmonauts, who were trained to fly in space, can be found on the Buran program website.[11]
Collins would go on to be the first female shuttle pilot, the first female shuttle commander, and then commander of the second "Return to Flight" mission in 2005. The "Hairballs" nickname, according to Jones in his book Sky Walking, came after the group, the 13th NASA astronaut class, put a black cat on its group patch.
Beginning with this NASA Group, non-US astronauts representing their home country's space agencies were brought in and trained alongside their NASA counterparts as full-fledged mission specialists, eligible to be assigned to any shuttle mission. As of 2023, Wakata is the earliest selected astronaut still on active service, and thus this is the earliest group with an active astronaut.[12]
The second Canadian astronaut group were selected by CSA. McKay was selected as an alternate after Robert Stewart left the Canadian Space Agency program to accept a position at the University of Calgary.[13] All the astronauts flew on the US Space Shuttle except Michael McKay, who resigned due to medical reasons.
Husband, Anderson and Chawla were crewmembers on the final Columbia mission. Chrétien trained as a backup Spacelab crew member in the 1980s and flew on both US and Soviet/Russian spacecraft, along with being the first non-US or Soviet/Russian astronaut to perform a space walk.
Brown, Clark and McCool were crewmembers on the final Columbia mission. Mark and Scott Kelly are twin brothers; James Kelly is not related. Loria resigned from his shuttle mission due to injury and never flew before retiring from the astronaut corps. Nowak, who flew on STS-121, was arrested on February 5, 2007, after confronting a woman entangled in a love triangle with a fellow astronaut. She was dismissed by NASA on March 6, the first astronaut to be both grounded and dismissed (prior astronauts who were grounded due to non-medical issues usually resigned or retired).
In October 2003, Yang Liwei became the first man to be sent into space by the space program of China, and his mission, Shenzhou 5, made the PRC the third country to independently send people into space.
This group includes Barbara Morgan, who was the backup "Teacher-In-Space" for Christa McAuliffe of the ill-fated Challenger Disaster in 1986. While often referred to as an Educator Astronaut, Morgan was selected by NASA as a mission specialist before the Educator Astronaut Project was formed.[15]
Patricia Robertson (née Hilliard) was killed in the crash of a private airplane before she was assigned to a Shuttle mission.
Oefelein was dismissed from NASA in 2007 due to his involvement in a love triangle with fellow astronaut Lisa Nowak.
* 2003 marked the first group of commercial astronauts. Only Binnie and Melville reached space, during a SpaceShipOne flight. Siebold has also piloted SpaceShipTwo, but no flights have yet reached space.
In 2006, four Malaysians were chosen to train for a flight to the International Space Station through the Angkasawan program. Sheikh Muszaphar became the first Malaysian in space when he flew aboard Soyuz TMA-11.
Ko San was chosen as the prime candidate over Yi So-yeon in September 2007. Yi So-yeon became prime candidate in March 2008 and made a trip to the ISS with the agency that year.
2008edit
July – Virgin Galactic Astronaut Pilots Group (Commercial Astronauts) (UK)[21]
8413 applications were received. Of those, 1430 (17%) were women. The most common first citizenship of the applicants was France (22.1%), Germany (21.4%), Italy (11.0%), the United Kingdom (9.8%), and Spain (9.4%).[23]
NASA selected the nine members of Group 20 from over 3500 applicants.[25] The NASA candidates were announced in June; international astronauts were added later that year. This was the first group of astronauts chosen for the post-Space Shuttle era and not trained to fly the Shuttle. Fischer, Tingle, and Wiseman were selected as pilots, but there is currently no distinction between pilots and non-pilots: all are considered mission specialists.
Jim Crowell, Bruce Davis, Kristine Ferrone, Amnon Govrin, Chad Healy, Ryan Kobrick, Joseph Palaia, Luís Saraiva, Brian Shiro, Laura Stiles, Veronica Ann Zabala-Aliberto
June 7 – Association of Spaceflight Professionals – Group 2 (Commercial Astronauts)[30]
Ben Corbin, José Miguel Hurtado, Jr, Jason Reimuller, Todd Romberger, Erik Seedhouse, Alli Taylor
October 12 – TsPK–15/RKKE–17 Cosmonaut Group(Russia)[31]
From 1 January 2011 at the Research Institute of the Y. A. Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center is a single detachment of the Russian Space Agency astronauts, which in 2015 consisted of 38 people. The next set of candidates was announced at the beginning of 2016,[33] then postponed until 2017.[34] In September 2016, the unit counted 31 astronauts.[35]
February 28 –Association of Spaceflight Professionals – Group3[36]
Christopher Altman, Jon-Erik Dahlin, Melania Guerra, Mindy Howard, Kris Lehnhardt, Abhishek Tripathi, Cosan Unuvar, Pavel Zagadailov, Luis Zea
October 26 – Virgin Galactic Astronaut Pilots Group (Commercial Astronauts) (UK)[37]
Keith Colmer
2012edit
February – Enrolled in a United squad of Roscosmos cosmonauts (Russia)
Konstantin Borisov, Alexander Gorbunov, Alexander Grebenkin, Sergei Mikayev, Kirill Peskov, Oleg Platonov, Yevgeny Prokopyev (rit.), Alexei Zubritsky
All but Yevgeny Prokopyev passed the state exam in December 2020 to be qualified for spaceflight assignments; Propkopyev did not qualify and was reassigned to basic space training.[48]
September 3 – Emirati Astronaut Group (United Arab Emirates)[49]
In 2018, Al Mansouri and Al Neyadi were announced as candidates to fly to the ISS on a Soyuz, as guest cosmonauts (Al Mansouri flew in 2019, with Al Neyadi as his backup). In 2020, the two were named to be assigned to Houston to train as full-fledged mission specialist astronauts and to join the cadre of International Partner Astronauts.[50] Al Neyadi later flew on SpaceX Crew-6 in March 2023, being the first long duration Emirati Astronaut.
Three of them will fly on Gaganyaan H1 mission in 2025, while the fourth one will be a backup astronaut for Gaganyaan H1, but will fly to International Space Station before the three onboard Ax-4 for a short duration mission in late 2024.[53][54][55]
Privately funded by mission commander Isaacman, Inspiration 4 was the first all civilian orbital spaceflight mission and the first human orbital spaceflight not funded by a nation state. 2021's Inspiration4 also made the highest human orbit of the 21st century. Other mission accomplishments of note: Mission pilot Proctor became the first female commercial astronaut spaceship pilot and the first African American female spacecraft pilot, and medical officer Arceneaux became the first astronaut to fly with a prosthesis.[58][59][60]
April 10 – Emirati Astronaut Group 2 (United Arab Emirates)[50][61]
The space market exceeds $330 billion today. Current estimates show the number growing to nearly $3 trillion over the next three decades. Human spaceflight is one of the sectors positioned for greatest growth. Commercial astronauts are expected to fill the gap in this transition.[68]
Boeing hired former NASA astronaut Chris Ferguson to join the Space Exploration Team.[70] Candidates for Boeing's astronaut corps include former NASA astronauts, commercial scientist astronauts and test pilots who have never flown in space.[71][72]
SpaceXedit
SpaceX has employed former NASA astronauts, but did not select any SpaceX employees to fly its commercial vehicles to the International Space Station.[citation needed]
SpaceX's former medical director at SpaceX, Anil Menon, is now a NASA astronaut selected in 2021 as a member of NASA Astronaut Group 23.
Association of Spaceflight Professionalsedit
(Learn how and when to remove this template message)
The world's first commercial astronaut corps,[citation needed] the Association of Spaceflight Professionals received funding[citation needed] for a series of crewed spaceflight missions through the NASA Flight Opportunities Program[citation needed] in March 2012.
Several million dollars have been allocated for detailed spectroscopic analysis of high-altitude noctilucent cloud formations on suborbital flights using rapidly reusable, task-and-deploy spaceplanes.[73][74][75][76][77][78][79][relevant to this section? – discuss]
The organization's commercial astronauts go through a selection process modeled after the NASA Astronaut Corps,[citation needed] which involves NASA astronauts.[citation needed] Some of its members serve as astronaut trainers themselves;[citation needed] some have interviewed as finalists in national space agency astronaut candidate selection campaigns.[80][failed verification][81][82][failed verification]Yi So-yeon, who completed an orbital mission to the International Space Station,[83] is a member of the organization.[citation needed]
The Teachers in Space program began in 2005. In 2012, the United States Rocket Academy announced that the program was expanding to include a broader range of participants, renaming the initiative Citizens in Space. For its first phase, Citizens in Space selected and trained ten citizen astronaut candidates to fly as payload operators, including four astronaut candidates already in training (Maureen Adams, Steve Heck, Michael Johnson, and Edward Wright).[86] Informal educator and aerospace historian Gregory Kennedy was among those listed.[87]
Copenhagen Suborbitalsedit
Copenhagen Suborbitals (2008, Denmark) seeks to make Denmark the fourth nation to launch humans above the Kármán line.[citation needed]
Mars Oneedit
Mars One was a private initiative with claims to establish a permanent human colony on Mars by 2023. The project was led by Dutch entrepreneur Bas Lansdorp, who announced plans for the Mars One mission in May 2012.
A Mars One astronaut selection announcement was made on April 19, 2013, and started its search on April 22, 2013. By August 2013, Mars One had more than 200,000 applicants from around the world.[88] Round Two selection results were declared on December 30, 2013, wherein a total of 1058 applicants from 107 countries were selected.
Mars One received a variety of criticism relating to medical, technical and financial feasibility.[89] Unverified rumors claimed that Mars One was a scam designed to take as much money as possible from donors, including those participating as contestants.[90][91]
In February 2019, it was reported that Mars One had declared bankruptcy in a Swiss court on January 15, 2019, and was permanently dissolved as a company.[92][93][94]
Waypoint2Space was granted FAA safety approval for its training services in 2014. The company works in collaboration with NASAJohnson Space Center in Houston to provide spaceflight training.[97][98][99]
Truax Engineeringedit
The first private firm that tried to build a suborbital space rocket, Truax Engineering, selected company employee, engineer and lifelong aviator Jeana Yeager as the first test pilot for its rocket. The project was halted in 1991 due to lack of funds.[100]
^"Biographies of Astronaut and Cosmonaut Candidates Lloyd Hoover". Spacefacts. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023.
^Cassutt, Michael (November 1998). Who's Who in Space (Subsequent ed.). New York: Macmillan Library Reference. ISBN 9780028649658.
^Jones, Eric M. "Apollo 11 Lunar Surface Journal: One Small Step". NASA. Archived from the original on 17 October 2023.
^Collins, Michael (1974). Carrying The Fire. p. 180. ISBN 0-553-23948-1.
^"Истребители выходят на орбиту" [Fighters Enter Orbit]. epizodsspace.narod.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 9 August 2023.
^"TsPK-6 Astronaut Group, 1976". astronautix.com. Archived from the original on June 17, 2017. Retrieved 2017-12-10.
^Соловьёв, Анатолий Яковлевич (Solovyev, Anatoly Yakovlevich)[circular reference]
^Yuri M. Baturin, ed. (2005). World Manned Cosmonautics – History, Equipment, People (Russian language). Moscow Publishing House. pp. 600–601.
^ abcCassutt, Michael. "The Manned Space Flight Engineer Programme Archived 2008-12-30 at the Wayback Machine" Spaceflight, January 1989.
^"Cosmonaut Selection: LII-1 Selection." Spacefacts. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023. Retrieved 15 November 2010.
^"Экипажи "Бурана" Несбывшиеся планы" [Crews of 'Buran': Unfulfilled Plans]. www.buran.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 15 November 2023. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
^"Active Astronauts and Cosmonauts". Spacefacts. Archived from the original on 21 June 2023. Retrieved 26 July 2023.
^Lowey, Mark (July 4, 1992). "Calgary astronaut bows out". Calgary Herald. p. B4. ProQuest 2263051201.
^"Астронавты Израиля" [Astronauts of Israel]. www.astronaut.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 27 November 2023.
^"Barbara Radding Morgan" (PDF). NASA. July 2010. Archived (PDF) from the original on 20 November 2023.
^"Набор 2003 года" [Class of 2003]. ASTROnote Space Encyclopedia (in Russian). Archived from the original on 27 November 2023.
^Encyclopedia Astronautica (2007). "Test Pilots". Encyclopedia Astronautica. Archived from the original on September 30, 2007. Retrieved October 27, 2007.
^Space.com. "X Prize: The Competition is Heating Up". Space.com. Archived from the original on May 24, 2009. Retrieved October 27, 2007.
^"Virgin Atlantic Pilots offered chance to become Astronauts". Travel News Asia. 30 March 2006. Archived from the original on 8 June 2023. Retrieved 27 October 2007.
^Sushma Veera (2007). "Angkasawan: Space is only the beginning". The Malay Mail. Archived from the original on October 28, 2007. Retrieved October 27, 2007.
^"Virgin Galactic". www.astronaut.ru (in Russian). Archived from the original on 9 June 2023.
^"ESA prepares for the next generation of human spaceflight and exploration by recruiting a new class of European astronauts" (Press release). European Space Agency. 20 May 2009. Archived from the original on 25 May 2023. Retrieved 20 May 2009.
^"Applicants from all ESA Member States to become European astronauts" (Press release). European Space Agency. 23 June 2008. Archived from the original on 23 November 2023. Retrieved 18 February 2021.
^Pearlman, Robert Z. (8 October 2009). "NASA's new astronaut class: call them the "Chumps"". collectSPACE. Archived from the original on 30 May 2023. Retrieved 8 October 2009.
^"NASA Selects New Astronauts for Future Space Exploration". NASA. 29 June 2009. Archived from the original on 1 August 2009. Retrieved 29 June 2009.
^"Selection groups". Spacefacts. Archived from the original on 27 November 2023.
^"Astronauts for Hire: The Emergence of a Commercial Astronaut Corps," accessed August 31, 2016.
^"Astronauts for Hire Launches". 2013-06-02. Archived from the original on 2013-06-02. Retrieved 2017-11-29.
^Neal, Valerie (2017-06-27), "Astronauts: Reinventing the Right Stuff", Spaceflight in the Shuttle Era and Beyond, Yale University Press, doi:10.12987/yale/9780300206517.003.0003, ISBN 9780300206517
^"Association of Spaceflight Professionals expands its team of Commercial Astronaut Candidates". Odyssey Magazine. 2011-08-08. Archived from the original on 2011-08-08. Retrieved 2017-11-29.
^"Набор 2010 года" [Class of 2010]. ASTROnote Space Encyclopedia (in Russian). Archived from the original on 23 November 2023.
^"Наборы в отряд космонавтов" [Selections for the Cosmonaut Squad]. www.gctc.ru (in Russian). Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. Archived from the original on 10 October 2023.
^"Центр подготовки космонавтов им. Ю.А. Гагарина. Досье" [Yuri Gagarin Cosmonaut Training Center. Dossier] (in Russian). TASS. 3 August 2015. Archived from the original on 27 November 2023.
^"Набор 2018 года" [Class of 2018]. ASTROnote Space Encyclopedia. Archived from the original on 27 November 2023.
^"Космическая энциклопедия ASTROnote". www.astronaut.ru.
^Astronauts for Hire Announces Selection of New Flight Members – Feb 28, 2011, accessed March 5, 2011.
^Knapp, Alex (27 October 2011). "Virgin Galactic Selects Its First Astronaut Pilot". Forbes. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023.
^"Набор 2012 года" [Class of 2012]. ASTROnote Space Encyclopedia (in Russian). Archived from the original on 27 November 2023.
^"News – VIRGIN GALACTIC ADDS TWO PILOTS TO COMMERCIAL FLIGHT TEAM | Virgin Galactic". Archived from the original on 2013-05-10. Retrieved 2013-05-15.
^"Association of Spaceflight Professionals Adds Six New Commercial Astronaut Candidates". 2013-06-10. Archived from the original on 2013-06-10. Retrieved 2017-11-29.
^Pearlman, Robert Z. (20 August 2013). "NASA's new astronaut class, the "8 Balls", reports for training". collectSPACE. Archived from the original on 13 July 2023. Retrieved 20 August 2013.
^Virgin Galactic Announces Todd Ericson as Space Pilot
^Virgin Galactic Appoints Mark Stucky as Pilot – Virgin Galactic
^Bolden (9 July 2015). "NASA Selects Astronauts for First U.S. Commercial Space Flights". NASA Blogs. NASA. Archived from the original on 1 August 2023.
^Pearlman, Robert Z. (27 August 2018). "NASA astronaut candidate resigns prior to qualifying for spaceflight". collectSPACE. Archived from the original on 21 December 2022.
^Pearlman, Robert Z. (13 August 2018). "Russia's new cosmonauts include brother of ISS crew member". collectSPACE. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023.
^Pearlman, Robert Z. (29 January 2021). "Roscosmos selects four new candidates to begin cosmonaut training". collectSPACE. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023. Retrieved 1 February 2021.
^"UAE names 2 astronauts to International Space Station". Gulf News. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023.
^ abPotter, Sean (17 September 2020). "United Arab Emirates Astronauts to Train at NASA's Johnson Space Center Under New Agreement". NASA. Archived from the original on 27 November 2023. Retrieved 21 September 2020.
^Pinto, Nolan (2020-01-01). "4 astronauts identified for Gaganyaan mission: Isro chief K Sivan". IndiaToday. Retrieved 2020-01-03.
^"PM Modi reveals names of 4 Gaganyaan mission astronauts". Indian Express. 2024-02-27. Retrieved 2024-02-27.
^"IAF video gives glimpses of Gaganyaan astronauts". The Times of India. 2023-10-04. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2023-10-04.
^"India, US to work together to protect space assets, cooperate for sending astronauts to ISS in 2024: Joint statement". The Times of India. 2023-09-09. ISSN 0971-8257. Retrieved 2023-10-03.
^"India, US plan to send Indian astronaut to International Space Station in 2024". Business Today. 2023-06-23. Retrieved 2023-10-03.
^Lei, Zhao. "18 picked for nation's 3rd generation of astronauts". China Daily. Archived from the original on 2 November 2023. Retrieved 9 October 2020.
^"Cosmonaut selection 2019: winners announced". Roscosmos. Roscosmos. 28 January 2021. Archived from the original on 23 January 2022. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
^"Meet the Crew of the First Ever All-Civilian Spaceflight". Fédération Aéronautique Internationale. 26 July 2022. Archived from the original on 10 October 2023. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
^Mongo, M. "The First Female Commercial Spaceship Pilot is also a Poet". Medium. PR HORSE. Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 17 August 2023.
^Chang, Kenneth (29 March 2021). "She Beat Cancer at 10. Now She's Set to Be the Youngest American in Space". Archived from the original on 26 September 2023. Retrieved 19 August 2023.
^Pearlman, Robert Z. (10 April 2021). "UAE names two new astronauts, including first woman candidate". collectSPACE. Archived from the original on 7 April 2023. Retrieved 11 April 2021.
^Jones, Andrew (4 October 2022). "China begins recruitment for 4th batch of astronauts". Space.com. Archived from the original on 8 November 2023. Retrieved 4 March 2023.
^"ESA presents new generation of astronauts" (Press release). European Space Agency. 23 November 2022. Archived from the original on 26 November 2023. Retrieved 3 January 2023.
^"In Line with Vision 2030, the Kingdom Returns to Space by Sending a Male and Female Astronaut to the International Space Station" (Press release). Riyadh: Saudi Press Agency. 12 February 2023. Archived from the original on 2 June 2023. Retrieved 13 February 2023.
^Megvannak a jelöltek: megnevezték, kik közül kerül majd ki Magyarország következő űrhajósa
^"Erdogan inaugure le TEKNOFEST et dévoile le nom du premier astronaute turc qui participera à une mission dans l'espace". Anadolu News Agency. Retrieved 2023-12-10.
^Peixoto, Roberto (1 July 2023). "1º cientista brasileiro escalado para ir ao espaço conduzirá estudo que pode mudar a colonização interplanetária" [The first Brazilian scientist selected to go to space will conduct a study that could change interplanetary colonization]. G1 (in Brazilian Portuguese). Archived from the original on 2 October 2023. Retrieved 2 October 2023.
^Sheetz, Michael (31 October 2017). "The space industry will be worth nearly $3 trillion in 30 years, Bank of America predicts". CNBC. Archived from the original on 21 June 2023. Retrieved 30 April 2018.
^"Tourists to space in the next five years – video Dailymotion". Dailymotion. 28 September 2010.
^"Boeing Welcomes Astronaut Chris Ferguson to Space Exploration Team". MediaRoom (Press release). Houston, Tx.: Boeing. 12 December 2011. Archived from the original on 8 June 2023.
^Boyle, Alan (4 August 2011). "Boeing chooses a rocket, looks for astronauts to fly on it". NBC News. Archived from the original on 7 June 2023.
^"Boeing To Unveil Crew, Spacesuits For CST-100 Test Flight This Summer". SpaceNews. April 15, 2015.
^Reimuller, J. D.; Fritts, D. C.; Thomas, G. E.; Taylor, M. J.; Mitchell, S.; Lehmacher, G. A.; Watchorn, S. R.; Baumgarten, G.; Plane, J. M. (December 2013). PoSSUM: Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere. Fall Meeting of the American Geophysical union. Project PoSSUM. Bibcode:2013AGUFMSA33B1993R. Archived from the original on 27 November 2023.
^Messier, Doug, ed. (24 February 2015). "Project PoSSUM Graduates First Class of Scientist-Astronauts" (Press release). Daytona Beach, Fl.: Project PoSSUM. Archived from the original on 11 January 2023 – via Parabolic Arc. The project evolved from the Noctilucent Cloud Imagery and Tomography experiment, selected by NASA's Flight Opportunities Program in March 2012 as experiment 46-S. PoSSUM is managed by Integrated Spaceflight Services under principal investigator Jason Reimuller, Vice President and COO, Association of Spaceflight Professionals.
^The PoSSUM Campaign: Polar Suborbital Science in the Upper Mesosphere. Space Science Institute, Boulder, Colorado. Southwest Research Institute. "PoSSUM will optimize the opportunity created by the "PMC Imagery and Tomography Experiment", a high-latitude campaign selected by the NASA Flight Opportunities Program (Experiment 46-S) to study the small-scale dynamics of PMCs (polar mesospheric clouds). The PoSSUM Project will make full use of the 46-S opportunity by fully utilizing all available payload space and campaign deployment time to optimize technology maturation and science return while validating a repeatable, low-cost means to study seasonal trends of PMCs."
^NASA. About NASA Flight Opportunities. nasa.gov. "The Flight Opportunities program within the NASA Space Technology Mission Directorate (STMD) strategically invests in the growth of the commercial spaceflight market by providing flight opportunities to test space exploration and utilization technologies on commercially available suborbital flight platforms." NASA. Retrieved 15 April 2019.
^"NASA Selects Commercial, Lower Cost Suborbital Firms to Test Space Technologies" (Press release). NASA. 22 April 2015. 15-07. Archived from the original on 27 November 2023.
^"Commercial Suborbital Flight Providers". Archived from the original on 1 September 2020. Retrieved 2018-03-01.
^NASA Selects New Technologies for Flight Opportunities Program. NASA (2017-12-18).
^"Dr. Erik Seedhouse | The Space Show". www.thespaceshow.com. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
^"U of T alumni make shortlist to become Canada's next astronauts". University of Toronto News. Retrieved 2017-11-29.
^"UAF faculty member shortlisted for astronaut program". UAF news and information. 2016-09-06. Retrieved 2017-11-30.
^Becker, Joachim. "Cosmonaut Biography: Yi Soyeon". www.spacefacts.de. Retrieved 2017-11-29.
^"Space Cadet: Niki Lauda training to be an astronaut with Virgin Galactic?!". Autoblog.
^ abSheetz, Michael (13 December 2018). "Virgin Galactic flies its first astronauts to the edge of space, taking one step closer to space tourism". CNBC. Archived from the original on 13 July 2023. Retrieved 13 December 2018.
^"Citizen Astronauts Complete Suborbital Scientist Course Training, Evaluating New Medical Technology at NASTAR Center | The NASTAR Center".
^"Greg Kennedy Joins Citizen Astronaut Corps". July 25, 2013.
^Fong, Kevin (11 February 2014). "The Strange, Deadly Effects Mars Would Have on Your Body". WIRED. Archived from the original on 16 May 2023. Retrieved 12 February 2014.
^[1] 'Mars One' finalist breaks silence, claims organization is a total scam, 16 March 2015
^Roche, Joseph (18 March 2015). "I'm on list to be a Mars One astronaut – but I won't see the red planet". The Guardian. Retrieved 8 April 2015.
^Cooper, Daniel (2019-02-11). "Mars One is dead". Engadget.
^Moseman, Andrew (2019-02-11). "Mars One Is Now Officially Dead. But It Always Was". Popular Mechanics.