After receiving a record-breaking number of
applications to join an exciting future of space exploration, NASA has
selected its largest astronaut class since 2000. Rising to the top of more
than 18,300 applicants, NASA chose 12 women and men as the agency’s new astronaut candidates.
Vice President Mike Pence joined NASA
leaders Wednesday as they introduced the members of the 2017 astronaut class
during an event at the agency’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. While at
Johnson, the vice president toured the International Space Station mission
control center, and the historic mission control center, which was used
during early NASA spaceflights, including the first moon landing mission,
Apollo 11. He also was presented with a model of the International Space
Station and a
framed U.S. flag that was flown to and from the orbiting laboratory this
winter.
“These are 12 men and women whose personal
excellence and whose personal courage will carry our nation to even greater
heights of discovery and who I know will inspire our children and our grandchildren
every bit as much as your forebears have done so in this storied American
program,” said Vice President Pence. “And to this newest class of astronauts,
it’s my honor to bring the sincere congratulations of the 45th President of
the United States of America, President Donald Trump. Your President is proud
of you, and so am I.”
The astronaut candidates will return to
Johnson in August to begin two years of training. Then they could be assigned
to any of a variety of missions, including: performing research on the International Space on NASA’s new Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket. Station, launching
from American soil on spacecraft
built by commercial companies, and departing
for deep space missions
“We look forward to the energy and talent
of these astronauts fueling our exciting future of discovery,” acting NASA
Administrator Robert Lightfoot said. “Between expanding the crew on board the
space station to conduct more research than ever before, and making
preparations to send humans farther into space than we’ve ever been, we are
going to keep them busy. These candidates are an important addition to the
NASA family and the nation’s human spaceflight team.”
Applicants included U.S. citizens in all 50
states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories Puerto Rico, Guam, and
American Samoa. The talented women and men selected for the new astronaut
class represent the diversity of America and the career paths that can lead
to a place in America’s astronaut corps.
The 2017 astronaut candidates are:
Kayla Barron,
29, Lt., U.S. Navy, is originally from Richland, Washington. She graduated
from the U.S. Naval Academy with a bachelor’s degree in systems engineering.
A Gates Cambridge Scholar, Barron earned a master’s degree in nuclear
engineering from the University of Cambridge. As a submarine warfare officer,
Barron was a member of the first class of women commissioned into the
submarine community. She’ll come to NASA from the U.S. Naval Academy, where
she has been serving as the flag aide to the superintendent.
Zena Cardman, 29,
calls Williamsburg, Virginia, home. She completed a Bachelor of Science in
Biology and Master of Science in Marine Sciences at The University of North
Carolina, Chapel Hill. Cardman is currently a National Science Foundation
Graduate Research Fellow working on her doctorate at The Pennsylvania State
University. Her research has focused on microorganisms in subsurface
environments, ranging from caves to deep sea sediments. Her field experience
includes multiple Antarctic expeditions, work aboard research vessels as both
scientist and crew, and NASA analog missions in British Columbia, Idaho and
Hawaii.
Raja Chari, 39,
Lt. Col., U.S. Air Force, hails from Waterloo, Iowa. He graduated from the
U.S. Air Force Academy with bachelor’s degrees in astronautical engineering
and engineering science. He continued on to earn a master’s degree in
aeronautics and astronautics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT)
and graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School. Chari has been serving
as the commander of the 461st Flight Test Squadron and the director of the
F-35 Integrated Test Force at Edwards Air Force Base in California.
Matthew Dominick,
35, Lt. Cmdr., U.S. Navy, was born and raised in Wheat Ridge, Colorado. He
earned a Bachelor of Science in Electrical Engineering from the University of
San Diego and a Master of Science in Systems Engineering from the Naval Postgraduate
School. He also graduated from the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School. Dominick was
at sea on the USS Ronald Reagan, serving as department head for Strike
Fighter Squadron 115, when he got the call saying he’d been selected as an
astronaut candidate.
Bob Hines, 42,
considers Harrisburg, Pennsylvania, his hometown. He graduated from Boston
University with a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering. From there, he
went on to graduate from the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School, and then the
University of Alabama, where he earned a master’s degree in aerospace
engineering. He has served in the U.S. Air Force and Air Force Reserves for
18 years. For the last five years, Hines has served as a NASA research pilot
at Johnson.
Warren “Woody” Hoburg,
31, is originally from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. He earned a bachelor’s
degree in aeronautics and astronautics from MIT. He continued on to earn a
doctorate in electrical engineering and computer science from the University
of California, Berkley. He is a private pilot and has extensive experience
with wilderness search and rescue efforts. Hoburg will come to NASA from MIT,
where he currently is leading a research group as an assistant professor of
Aeronautics and Astronautics.
Dr. Jonny Kim,
33, Lt., U.S. Navy, was born and raised in Los Angeles. He enlisted in the
U.S. Navy, then trained and operated as a Navy SEAL, completing more than 100
combat operations and earning a Silver Star and Bronze Star with Combat V.
Afterward, he went on to complete a degree in mathematics at the University
of San Diego and a doctorate of medicine at Harvard Medical School. Kim is a
resident physician in emergency medicine at Massachusetts General Hospital.
Robb Kulin, 33,
hails from Anchorage, Alaska. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mechanical
engineering from the University of Denver before going on to complete a
master’s degree in materials science and a doctorate in engineering at the
University of California, San Diego. He has previous experience as an ice
driller in Antarctica on the West Antarctic Ice Sheet and Taylor Glaciers,
and as a commercial fisherman in Chignik, Alaska. Since 2011, Kulin has
worked for SpaceX in Hawthorne, California, where he leads the Launch Chief
Engineering group.
Jasmin Moghbeli,
33, Maj., U.S. Marine Corps, considers Baldwin, New York, her hometown. She
earned a bachelor’s degree in aerospace engineering with information
technology at MIT, followed by a master’s degree in aerospace engineering
from the Naval Postgraduate School. She also is a distinguished graduate of
the U.S. Naval Test Pilot School. Moghbeli currently tests H-1 helicopters
and serves as the quality assurance and avionics officer for Marine
Operational Test and Evaluation Squadron 1 in Yuma, Arizona.
Loral O’Hara,
34, calls Sugar Land, Texas, home. She earned a bachelor’s degree in
aerospace engineering at the University of Kansas and a master’s degree in
aeronautics and astronautics from Purdue University. As a student, she
participated in NASA’s KC-135 Reduced Gravity Student Flight Opportunities
Program, the NASA Academy at the agency’s Goddard Space Flight Center, and
the internship program at NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory. O’Hara is
currently a research engineer at Woods Hole Oceanographic Institution in
Woods Hole, Massachusetts.
Dr. Francisco “Frank” Rubio,
41, Maj., U.S. Army, is originally from Miami. He earned a bachelor’s degree
in international relations at the U.S. Military Academy at West Point and a
doctorate of medicine from the Uniformed Services University of the Health Sciences.
Rubio has accumulated more than 1,100 hours of flight time in helicopters,
including 600 hours of combat and imminent danger time. He’s currently
serving as a surgeon for the 3rd Battalion of the Army’s 10th Special Forces
Group at Fort Carson, Colorado.
Jessica Watkins,
29, hails from Lafayette, Colorado. She graduated from Stanford University
with a bachelor’s degree in geological and environmental sciences, then went
on to earn a doctorate in geology from the University of California, Los
Angeles. Watkins has worked at NASA’s Ames Research Center and Jet Propulsion
Laboratory and currently is a postdoctoral fellow at the California Institute
of Technology, where she collaborates on the Mars Science Laboratory rover,
Curiosity.
With the addition of these 12 members of the
2017 astronaut candidate class, NASA now has selected 350 astronauts since
the original Mercury 7 in 1959.
“These women and men deserve our
enthusiastic congratulations,” said astronaut and Johnson Space Center
Director Ellen Ochoa. “Children all across the United States right now dream
of being in their shoes someday. We here at NASA are excited to welcome them
to the team and look forward to working with them to inspire the next
generation of explorers.”
The astronaut candidates will be available
to talk to media in person at Johnson and by remote satellite link on June 8.
Media interested in this limited opportunity should contact the Johnson
newsroom at 281-483-5111.
Find photos and additional information
about the new astronaut candidates at:
Follow NASA astronauts on Twitter at:
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