Want to visit the space? NASA is hiring new astronauts

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Want to visit the space? NASA is hiring new astronauts
Want to visit the space? NASA is hiring new astronauts

New Delhi : If flying high into space was always your dream then NASA's next recruitment drive is for you. The US-based space agency is accepting applications for new astronauts.

The application process began from March 2 and the interested candidates can apply for it until March 31 at 11:59 p.m. EDT (0459 GMT April 1).

While it will be a little long process of selection, the final list of selected candidates will be announced by NASA somewhere around mid-2021.

No information has been provided on how many candidates will be selected for it, but competition will be fierce; the agency only picked 12 out of 18,300 applicants during the last selection, which wrapped up in 2017.

One of the finalists resigned during training, leaving 11 people who graduated and became eligible for spaceflight early this year.

The basics for qualification are rigorous, and accepted astronaut candidates usually exceed the mark. That said, NASA said applicants should hold a master's degree (or equivalent) in a science, technology, engineering or mathematics (STEM) field, which could include engineering, biological science, physical science, computer science or mathematics.

Some applicants may be accepted without the master's degree if they hold one of these qualifications:

Two years of work toward a STEM PhD program.

A completed doctor of medicine or doctor of osteopathic medicine degree.

Completion (or expected completion by June 2021) of a nationally or internationally recognized test pilot school program. If test pilot school is your only advanced degree, NASA requires a bachelor's degree in a STEM field as well.

Outside of basic education, NASA demands experience — either two years of "related, progressively responsible" work in your field, or a minimum of 1,000 hours command-piloting a jet aircraft. Candidates also must pass a NASA long-duration spaceflight physical, as you may spend anywhere from six months to a year in space on the International Space Station (ISS) after being selected for a flight.

"Becoming an astronaut is no easy task, because being an astronaut is no easy task," Steve Koerner, NASA's director of flight operations and chair of the astronaut selection board at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, said in a statement. 

"Those who apply will likely be competing against thousands who have dreamed of, and worked toward, going to space for as long as they can remember. But somewhere among those applicants are our next astronauts, and we look forward to meeting you."

For more information on how to apply for it CLICK HERE