posted 06-29-2009 10:21 AM               

NASA Selects New Astronauts for Future Space Exploration

After reviewing more than 3500 applications, NASA has selected nine men and women for the 2009 astronaut candidate class. They will begin training at NASA's Johnson Space Center, Houston, in August.

"This is a very talented and diverse group we've selected," said Bill Gerstenmaier, NASA associate administrator for Space Operations. "They will join our current astronauts and play very important roles for NASA in the future. In addition to flying in space, astronauts participate in every aspect of human spaceflight, sharing their expertise with engineers and managers across the country. We look forward to working with them as we transcend from the shuttle to our future exploration of space, and continue the important engineering and scientific discoveries aboard the International Space Station."

The new astronaut candidates:

• Serena M. Aunon, 33, of League City, Texas; University of Texas Medical Branch-Wyle flight surgeon for NASA's Space Shuttle, International Space Station and Constellation Programs; born in Indianapolis, Ind. Aunon holds degrees from The George Washington University, University of Texas Health Sciences Center in Houston, and UTMB.

• Jeanette J. Epps, 38, of Fairfax, Va.; technical intelligence officer with the Central Intelligence Agency; born in Syracuse, N.Y. Epps holds degrees from LeMoyne College and the University of Maryland.

• Jack D. Fischer, Major U.S. Air Force, 35, of Reston, Va.; test pilot; U.S. Air Force Strategic Policy intern (Joint Chiefs of Staff) at the Pentagon; born in Boulder, Colo. Fischer is a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Academy and Massachusetts Institute of Technology.

• Michael S. Hopkins, Lt. Colonel U.S. Air Force, 40, of Alexandria, Va.; special assistant to the Vice Chairman (Joint Chiefs of Staff) at the Pentagon; born in Lebanon, Mo. Hopkins holds degrees from the University of Illinois and Stanford University.

• Kjell N. Lindgren, 36, of League City, Texas; University of Texas Medical Branch-Wyle flight surgeon for NASA's Space Shuttle, International Space Station and Constellation Programs; born in Taipei, Taiwan. Lindgren has degrees from the U.S. Air Force Academy, Colorado State University, University of Colorado, the University of Minnesota, and UTMB.

• Kathleen (Kate) Rubins, 30, of Cambridge, Mass.; born in Farmington, Conn.; principal investigator and fellow, Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT and conducts research trips to the Congo. Rubins has degrees from the University of California-San Diego and Stanford University.

• Scott D. Tingle, Commander U.S. Navy, 43, of Hollywood, Md.; born in Attleboro, Mass.; test pilot and Assistant Program Manager-Systems Engineering at Naval Air Station Patuxent River. Tingle holds degrees from Southeastern Massachusetts University (now University of Massachusetts Dartmouth) and Purdue University.

• Mark T. Vande Hei, Lt. Colonel U.S. Army, 42, of El Lago, Texas; born in Falls Church, Va.; flight controller for the International Space Station at NASA's Johnson Space Center, as part of U.S. Army NASA Detachment. Vande Hei is a graduate of Saint John's University and Stanford University.

• Gregory R. (Reid) Wiseman, Lt. Commander U.S. Navy, 33, of Virginia Beach, Va.; born in Baltimore; test pilot; Department Head, Strike Fighter Squadron 103, USS Dwight D. Eisenhower, based out of Oceana Virginia. Wiseman is a graduate of Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Johns Hopkins University.

posted 06-29-2009 04:01 PM               

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Originally posted by ASCAN1984:
Which two are the pilots?

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posted 06-29-2009 06:22 PM               

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Originally posted by Rob Joyner:
...did NASA consider these nine because they have qualities that would work well within the Constellation program specifically or were they hired through standard shuttle astronaut guidelines?

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posted 06-30-2009 05:44 PM               

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Originally posted by chappy:
It seems that one of these women will be the first woman to walk on the Moon?

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posted 06-30-2009 06:01 PM               

From Space Camp to Space
NASA selects two Space Camp grads for the astronaut corps

Could a Space Camp grad be the next person to step foot on the moon? It's possible! NASA has chosen two Space Camp graduates for their 2009 Astronaut Candidate Class.

Kathleen Rubins, of Cambridge, Massachusetts, and Serena Aunon, of League City, Texas, are among the nine newest members of the astronaut program. They were selected from over 3,500 applicants. Beginning with the original "Mercury Seven" astronauts, selected in 1959, NASA has chosen only 321 men and women for the astronaut program.

"It's great news," says Larry Capps, CEO of the U.S. Space & Rocket Center, home of Space Camp. "What a tremendous honor for these young women to distinguish themselves this way. We can all be very proud of them," he adds.

Rubins, 30, has degrees from the University of California-San Diego and Stanford University. She will soon leave her job as a principal investigator and fellow at the Whitehead Institute for Biomedical Research at MIT to begin her astronaut training.

Kate, as she's known to her friends, attended Space Academy in Huntsville in 1990. She was 12 and says while her friends were reading "Tiger Beat" magazine at the time, she was reading "Sky and Telescope" magazine. "I've always been interested in science and exploring our world, from microbes to the solar system," Rubins says.

Aunon, 33, has earned degrees from George Washington University, the University of Texas Health Sciences Center in Houston and UTMB. Dr. Aunon currently works at the University of Texas Medical Branch-Wyle as a flight surgeon for NASA's Space Shuttle, International Space Station and Constellation Programs.

Serena attended Advanced Space Academy in Huntsville in 1992. She was 15 years old and already in the 11th grade. She says she knew she wanted to be astronaut "...when I saw my first shuttle launch as a kid in elementary school. Let's face it, the Shuttle is a wonderfully complex and beautiful vehicle. It's hard not to be inspired by its sheer power," she says.

But Rubins and Aunon will likely never have the chance to fly aboard the shuttle. The shuttle fleet is scheduled for retirement next year, about the same time they are scheduled to complete their initial astronaut training. Rubins and Aunon represent the future of the space program, the men and women who will return to the moon and help pave the way for even longer duration flights to Mars and eventually beyond.

"We have a sign downstairs that says, through these doors pass America's next generation of scientists, mathematicians and explorers," Capps says. He adds, "Kate and Serena not only represent that bold statement, but they also represent the dream we hold for America's youth. We couldn't be happier for them."

posted 07-03-2009 05:19 PM               

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Originally posted by Michael Cassutt:
There are _four_ with test pilot training: Fischer, Hopkins, Tingle and Wiseman.

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posted 07-03-2009 08:23 PM               

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Originally posted by ASCAN1984:
Sorry I meant astronaut pilots as opposed to mission specialists.

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posted 07-08-2009 12:07 PM               

NASA Astronaut Group 20

Pilots: Jack D. Fischer, Scott D. Tingle, Gregory R. Wiseman

Mission specialists: Serena M. Aunon, Jeanette J. Epps, Michael S. Hopkins, Kjell N. Lindgren, Kathleen Rubins, Mark T. Vande Hei

posted 07-08-2009 12:28 PM               

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Originally posted by AstroAutos:
Actually, it seems that this group has now been divided into the pilot and mission specialist categories

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posted 07-08-2009 01:30 PM               

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Originally posted by AstroAutos:
This is the chart I found

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posted 07-08-2009 01:41 PM               

Apologies Michael, you're right it would be pointless to divide them into Pilots and Mission Specialists with no shuttle!

posted 07-08-2009 05:15 PM               

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Originally posted by Michael Cassutt:
Further, there's no point to the pilot/MS distinction...

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posted 07-08-2009 05:50 PM               

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Originally posted by capoetc:
Could it be possible that the pilot designation is intended in preparation for possible future Commander/Pilot designations on Orion?

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posted 07-09-2009 09:08 AM               

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Originally posted by KSCartist:
This Group 20 will also include Hansen and Saint-Jacques from CSA and Onishi and Yui from JAXA. So the "nine" will now be thirteen.

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posted 07-09-2009 09:52 AM               

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Originally posted by AstroAutos:
If O1, O2 and O3 all have piloting designations on lunar missions, then is not a given that those three positions will be taken up by people with test pilot experience?

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posted 07-09-2009 09:54 AM               

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Originally posted by eurospace:
Actually, they will also be joined by six ESA astronaut candidates, which will make nineteen then.

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posted 07-28-2009 02:28 PM               

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Originally posted by Robert Pearlman:
How is saying "O1, O2, O3" any more prone to errors than "MS1, MS2, MS3" or for that matter, "EV1, EV2"?

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Well, you've got this scenario, assuming a six-person Orion crew:

Mission control: "Orion, Houston."

Astronaut 1: "Houston, Orion. Go ahead."

Mission control: "The vehicle is slightly overweight for re-entry, but your current oxygen levels are good. So go ahead and vent any excess oxygen."

Astronaut 1: "Understand go ahead and get rid of the excess oxygen?"

Mission control: "Affirmative."

Astronaut 1, to rest of Orion crew: "Houston says we are go for an O2 dump."