Your Chance to be an Astronaut

codewarrior78411 writes "NASA posted a hiring notice for new astronauts Tuesday, on usajobs.com, seeking for the first time in almost 30 years men and women to fly aboard spacecraft other than the shuttle. The agency is seeking 10 to 15 new faces for three to six-month missions aboard the international space station." Requirements include 'Must be a U.S. citizen between 5-foot-2 and 6-foot-3 in height (to squeeze into Russia's three-passenger Soyuz capsule)' 'At least a bachelor's degree in engineering, a biological or physical science, or mathematics' 'three years of relevant professional experience' and most interestingly 'Vision correctable to 20/20. For the first time, the space agency will consider applicants who have undergone successful refractive eye surgery.'

Comments

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[pzs]

Must be willing to wear a diaper on long drives?

Peter

Re:(this joke will appear a thousand times)

[eniac42]

(sigh).. Must be able to convert feet to meters..

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[Oktober Sunset]

The days of launching chimps into space are long over.

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[phulegart]

So going from one cave to the next is ok. Going from one house to the next is ok. Going from one city to the next is ok. Going from one continent to the next is ok. But work toward going from one planet to another... HELL NO???

If you have a better plan than the one in action involving space stations and the craft they are using (poorly) to make this happen, then by all means, put it into action. Otherwise, shut up. It's not like private enterprise isn't getting involved. It is. If you are one of those people who thinks that the development of the bicycle, the automobile, the boat, and the plane were all great ideas, but we should stop when crossing the boundary of space, stick with living in the basement.

I'm holding out for the security guard position on a space station.

Re:Damn it!

[morgan_greywolf]

And just what constitutes 'relevant professional experience.'? Most NASA astronauts retire from NASA. Where are these experienced astronauts going to come from? Former Soviet Bloc countries?

One-way or two-way missions?

[nmg196]

If the missions are one-way, I think my boss would be an excellent candidate. I'll even fill out his application for him.

Re:One-way or two-way missions?

[Sparr0]

An interesting philosophical question that I have posed in the past... Would you take a one-way trip to Mars? You get to be the first person to ever set foot on the red planet, your family is generously rewarded, and you take a suicide pill N months after landing when your food supplies run out.

Re:One-way or two-way missions?

[IceCreamGuy]

I have actually specifically told my friends when it's come up in conversation that if, somehow, I was approached by NASA and they told me that I could got to Mars, that I would never be coming back, that I would die there, and that I would never see my friends and family again, and I had to leave right now with no time to say goodbye or get any of my things, I would absolutely do it, no questions asked. People have told me that's a stupid thing to think, or that I'm a jerk because I would leave everyone I know so quickly, but that's just the way it is. If I could go to outer space, my life's meaning would change so drastically that it wouldn't even be worth it to think in those terms to me, and I think to my friends and family as well. -Julius

Re:One-way or two-way missions?

[Penguinisto]

A guaranteed suicide mission would be worthless on a personal level (unless I had, say, terminal cancer or somesuch, then I'd certainly be game), but more importantly, it would be worthless on a political level. You don't send folks up to die, because the whole point of the exercise is two-fold:

1) science / exploration

2) getting ordinary folks to think "hey - that could be me/my kids up there someday! Cool!"

The reason the Space Race was so popular in the '50s and '60s wasn't so much the 'Red Menace', but ordinary folks (kids chief among them) to fantasize about being spacemen and spacewomen. SciFi was a HUGE factor in having folks dream of space as a destination in the first place.

Sure, the odds of, say, terraforming Mars in my lifetime is pretty much nil, but the ideas of adventure and exploration? Especially in a world that pretty much has had human eyes hovering over nearly every square hectare of it by now? It's a pretty damned cool idea.

/P

I wouldn't...

[tryfan]

leave my job at Stargate Command for this!

Here's my chance

[pak9rabid]

Here's my chance to show up that smug Inanimate Carbon Rod.

Re:I qualify

[Aardpig]

No, I'm sorry, they wanted a degree in engineering, math or science.

Re:height discrimination!

[UbuntuDupe]

It's not discrimination because you need to be under a certain height in order to fit through certain passage ways and into certain rooms. Since that requirement is objectively tied to be ability to perform the job, it cannot count as discrimination to place that height maximum as a requirement.

This is just like how it's absolutely impossible to do any kind of engineering-related task whatsoever without a 4-year degree from an accredited engineering program, and therefore employers are 100% justified in making that a requirement for engineering jobs and why it's not discrimination and is legal under the ADA and relevant employment law. [/can't say with straight face]

Re:Damn it!

[click2005]

I've watched every episode of Star Trek, Stargate and Lost in Space. I'm sure that qualifies as experience.

Salary

[dlhm]

The Salary kind of sucks for being strapped to a bomb....

Re:Damn it!

[Billosaur]

I don't think a Psych degree counts... so I'm out of the running; I won't even belabor the fact that I'm not in any kind of shape for it. And no, $60K isn't a lot considering the work an astronaut does. Most astronauts spend their lives trying to make money other ways, with mixed results. The Mercury 7 were blessed in the beginning by having their exclusive contract with Life magazine that supplemented their income, and due to their fame, they received more than their fair share of perks. I don't think astronauts today have it quite so good, which is a shame.

Re:Damn it!

[dougmc]

And just what constitutes 'relevant professional experience.'? Well, just look at what most astronauts over the years did before becoming astronauts. I seem to recall a lot of military pilots doing it, for example.

Though my guess is that they're less looking for `Top Gun' types of guys and more for the brainy scientist guys -- but guys who are physically fit too. And so relevant professional experience would probably mean doing brainy scientist sorts of things. I imagine the military still has a lot of people like this ...

Though in general, if you want a job, apply -- even if you don't fit all their qualifications exactly. I doubt this is any different -- though I imagine that they won't be hiring many people who merely have bachelors degrees. I'd expect them to pick PhDs instead. Especially if I'm right about the sort of people they want.

Re:So why the degree req'mt?

[mcmonkey]

Why not instead start hiring ironworkers and folks who actually know WTF they're doing in high-up construction techniques? They're still (according to accounts) building the ISS, right?

Maybe because this is the real-world NASA and not a Ben Afflec movie?

Re:Damn it!

[trolltalk.com]

"I've watched every episode of Star Trek, Stargate and Lost in Space. I'm sure that qualifies as experience."

Stargate takes away points. You need stuff with real rocket science, so you'll know what someone means when they say "They've gone plaid!"

Suggestions

[Overzeetop]

Get a PhD
Get your private pilots license
Get certified in Scuba
Run 10 miles a day, be in good physical shape
Make sure you are comfortable speaking in public, and are fairly good at it
Have diverse interests

Now you've met the real minimum requirements...go have fun!

FFWIW, I considered being an as-can, and know others who were attempting to get selected. Getting into the NBA is a bit easier than getting into to be an astronaut, statistically speaking.

Astronaut? Yes; Go into space? No

[sircastor]

On a radio show called "This American Life", the host Ira Glass interviewed a couple of Astronauts which revealed that most astronauts haven't been in space, and many aren't even scheduled for a flight. So if you enjoy meetings and lots of paperwork, sign up. Yes it gives you a chance to get into space (better than us normal ground-dwellers), but frankly, this isn't the dream that most want it to be.

Re:Damn it!

[IndustrialComplex]

Day 45: All he does is write in that little notebook. Why Why Why who. No. ...

Day 75: I think Dr. Evers knows about my connection with the galactic federal space donkeys. Operation F. Y. C. may have to be accelerated. ...

Day 83: Mishnog's suggestion to use the vacuum of space to preserve the meat was a success!

Re:Damn it!

[malilo]

Though my guess is that they're less looking for `Top Gun' types of guys and more for the brainy scientist guys -- but guys who are physically fit too. I'm getting a phD in astrophysics and I compete in triathlons... But I'm not a guy ;)