NASA Selects A Space Crew

Sen-NASA has selected four veteran astronauts to train for test flights aboard commercial space taxis under development by SpaceX and Boeing. Each company is guaranteed at least two flights to the ISS after NASA certifies their vehicles as safe. NASA is extensively involved with the companies and reviews their training plans.

“Had we received everything he asked for, we’d be preparing to send these astronauts to space on commercial carriers as soon as this year”.

Despite two recent commercial rocket explosions, private space companies are essential to NASA’s future space explorations.

Boeing’s yet-to-fly craft is called the CST-100 for Crew Space Transportation and 100 kilometers, the threshold of space.

Behnken said by working shoulder-to-shoulder with the companies, the astronauts were “instrumental in making sure the vehicles are ready for the first flights when the time comes”.

In September 2014, Boeing and SpaceX, both were granted permission by NASA to develop and operate spacecrafts that would ferry astronauts to and fro from the global Space Station.

Gwynne Shotwell, president and COO of SpaceX, also welcomed the announcement, saying, “Human spaceflight is why SpaceX was founded, and we look forward to supporting our nation’s exploration efforts by launching astronauts from America again”.

After serving as a test pilot, Behnken joined the astronaut program in 2000.

Behnken graduated from Pattonville High (1988) and Washington University (1992), where he was named outstanding mechanical engineering student during his senior year.

Eric Boe is another ex- Air Force test pilot, as well as a combat flier over Iraq with 55 missions on his record. Each wants to be first to fly. He has logged more than 700 hours in space and 37 hours in six spacewalks. “Florida Tech had the reputation for being the hardest, the most difficult, I don’t know why I chose that, maybe the challenge”, said Williams, who holds an undergraduate degree from the U.S. Naval Academy.

Douglas Hurley Mr. Hurley was a Marine Corps officer, where he served for over 24 years. An Air Force colonel, he has 5,000 flight hours. Not that it ever truly stopped, but with the retirement of the Space Shuttle in 2011, NASA has been transporting astronauts to and from the worldwide Space Station (ISS) by way of Russia’s Soyuz spacecraft. Bolden enlisted the goals of the mission as that of returning the travelling astronauts back to United States soil.

SpaceX won a $2.6 billion contract to construct a crewed version of its Dragon supply capsule.

Boe also took part in two shuttle flights and has spent close to a month in space.

Williams, a U.S. Navy captain, was born in Euclid, Ohio, but considers Needham, Massachusetts, her hometown.