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2h ago

NASA Unveils 10 Astronaut Candidates in First Majority-Women Class

Two years of training now start toward ISS or Artemis assignments, with one candidate already flown to orbit.

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US Sen. Ted Cruz, right, makes comments as the astronaut candidate class of 2025 is introduced during a ceremony at the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston, Monday, Sept. 22, 2025.
FILE - Workers on scaffolding repaint the NASA logo near the top of the Vehicle Assembly Building at the Kennedy Space Center in Cape Canaveral, Fla., May 20, 2020. (AP Photo/John Raoux, File)
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Overview

  • NASA introduced 10 astronaut candidates selected from more than 8,000 applicants in its 24th class since 1959.
  • The cohort includes six women and four men with backgrounds spanning test piloting, engineering, geology, medicine and a former SpaceX launch director.
  • Anna Menon, a Polaris Dawn crew member in 2024, becomes the first NASA astronaut candidate with prior orbital experience.
  • The group begins a two-year curriculum covering station operations, geology, survival training, space health, robotics and high-performance jet flying before becoming flight-eligible.
  • Agency leaders linked the class to future Artemis and Mars ambitions, with assignments to be determined as they join a corps reported at 41 active U.S. astronauts.