Application - Blog Posts

5 Signs You Might Be Ready to Apply to be an Astronaut

Did you hear? Astronaut applications are open! Here are a few signs that might mean you’re ready to apply:

1. You Don’t Mind Having Roommates

When you’re an astronaut, you have to work and live with your crew mates for extended periods of time. It’s important to the mission and your safety that everyone can collaborate and work together.

2. You LOVE Space

If the Milky Way, planets and space travel doesn’t excite you then this might not be the perfect job for you. But if you love galaxies, space station research and deep space exploration, then maybe you should take a look at our application.

3. Adventure Doesn’t Scare You

Being an astronaut means that you get to take part in adventures that most people will never experience. Imagine: sitting on the launch pad in the Orion spacecraft, atop a rocket that’s getting ready to launch. You’ll travel farther into space than any other humans have been and help push the boundaries of technology in the proving ground of deep space lunar orbits, leading the way for future missions to Mars.

4. You Want to be on the Cutting Edge of Science

Not only do astronauts get to travel to space, but they also get to conduct really cool research in microgravity. Did you know that right now they’re growing Zinnia flowers on the International Space Station? This research could help with our future deep space exploration and could teach us a few things about growing plants on Earth. Learn more about all the awesome research on the space station HERE.

5. You’re Not Afraid of Heights

One of the coolest things about being an astronaut, is that you get to go to SPACE! At the very least, you’ll travel to the International Space Station, which is 250 miles above Earth. Or, you could be one of the first astronauts to travel to a distant asteroid or even Mars!

Interested in applying to become an astronaut? You’re in luck, applications open Dec. 14! Learn about some common myths about becoming an astronaut HERE.

Apply to be one of our astronauts HERE.

Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com

Dear Moms of Texas & USA

I have a resume that is as complex as this post.  I have no support and completed these seven emails while living in a group home in San Jose California.  My parents have a home and love me very much, my application for World Leadership is very complex and my assignment is to fix the mental health system.  This is my official resume for 2018:  https://1drv.ms/f/s!AhBBI2dp4QNlrgREaWjgjKbEHLv8

What’s Up - March 2018

What’s Up For March?

Several Planets and the Zodiacal Light!

This month, at sunset, catch elusive Mercury, bright Venus, the Zodiacal Light, Mars, Saturn and Jupiter between midnight and dawn!

Both Venus and Mercury play the part of “evening stars” this month. At the beginning of the month they appear low on the western horizon.

The Moon itself joins the pair from March 18th through the 20th. 

The Moon skims by the Pleiades star cluster and Taurus’s bright red star Aldebaran on the next few evenings, March 21 through the 23rd.

Jupiter, king of the planets, rises just before midnight this month and earlier by month end. 

Even through the smallest telescope or average binoculars, you should see the 4 Galilean moons, Europa, Io, Callisto and Ganymede.

The March morning sky offers dazzling views of Mars and Saturn all month long.

Through a telescope, you can almost make out some of the surface features on Mars.

Look a little farther into Mars’ future and circle May 5th with a red marker. When our InSight spacecraft launches for its 6 month journey to the Red Planet, Mars will be easily visible to your unaided eye. 

Keep watching Mars as it travels closer to Earth. It will be closest in late July, when the red planet will appear larger in apparent diameter than it has since 2003!

You are in for a real treat if you can get away to a dark sky location on a moonless night this month – the Zodiacal Light and the Milky Way intersect! 

The Zodiacal light is a faint triangular glow seen from a dark sky just after sunset in the spring or just before sunrise in the fall.

The more familiar Milky Way is one of the spiral arms of our galaxy. 

What we’re seeing is sunlight reflecting off dust grains that circle the Sun in the inner solar system. These dust grains journey across our sky in the ecliptic, the same plane as the Moon and the planets.

Watch the full What’s Up for March Video: 

There are so many sights to see in the sky. To stay informed, subscribe to our What’s Up video series on Facebook. Make sure to follow us on Tumblr for your regular dose of space: http://nasa.tumblr.com.   

Astronaut Application Tips From A NASA Intern 

Astronauts are unavoidable in your daily work at Johnson Space Center. They are on the phone talking about flight plans as you try to pass on a bicycle, in meetings about future missions as you doodle on a note pad, and in front of you in line at the cafeteria as you wait to get chicken tacos. Us interns have had many opportunities to attend lectures put on by astronauts and attempt to squeeze every tidbit out about becoming an astronaut too. 

Apply Apply Apply

You can't become an ASCAN on a whim, it takes persistence. Yes that's right, pronounced "Ass" "Can", astronaut candidate. Many astronauts applied many times before being selected. Clayton Anderson, small town Nebraskan boy turned NASA engineer, applied 15 times over 15 years before becoming an ASCAN. A Mission Control flight controller in my team illustrated how every application you ever submit is stored in NASA's records. He mentioned Duane Ross, former Head of Astronaut selection, kept applications on a rolodex-esk machine. The first letter of the applicants sir name could be entered and the rolodex machine flipped to their stack of applications like a deck of cards being neatly flipped through. With modern applications being submitted via USAjobs.gov I fear the aesthetic of application sorting machines will not be preserved. Although you should apply many times doesn't mean you should apply before you meet the minimum requirements. Chris Cassidy, Chief of the Astronaut Office and former Navy Seal, remarked it would be wise to wait till you have completed a Bachelors Degree and three years of work experience. Please don't bog down the system with your work as head cheese sprinkler at Pizza Hut. 

Bare Minimums

I mentioned Chris Cassidy's minimum requirements but did not expand on what Bachelor Degrees are accepted. Typically STEM (Science Technology Engineering & Math) degrees are accepted. Particular programs can cause a grey area. If you are not confident that your degree is accepted email or Tweet at NASA with questions. Once the December 14th application opens a point of contact should be listed to ask questions. Current Head of Astronaut Selection Anne Roemer notes that an important aspect of your degree/ experience is that you can be effectively compared to other candidates. If you can not be sorted into a pile to be compared with other applicants you essentially get tossed out. In addition to experience in industry experience in the armed forces is highly admirable. Approximately 60% of astronauts have military background. Majority of civilians have a doctorate degree. Although your application will be packed with honors and laureates a bland resume format is not effective. It is desirable to express work and project experience in a narrative voice, tell your story. 

Not A Checklist 

When asked "Why were you picked to be an astronaut?" five out of five astronauts I have asked said, "I don't know". Many variables come into play when selecting a candidate that the "kicker" characteristic that gets you in isn't obvious. A sure fire way NOT to get picked is to make your journey to becoming an astronaut a check list. I had the opportunity to spend time with astronaut Mike Fossum at a cook out this summer. He said, "The road to becoming an astronaut is littered with successful careers". Meaning perfectly respectable careers were lost as folks tried in vain to be astronauts. Simply do what you enjoy most. That may naturally lead to a career as an astronaut. 

Applications open December 14th: https://www.nasa.gov/press-release/be-an-astronaut-nasa-seeks-explorers-for-future-space-missions

 More application requirement details: http://www.nasa.gov/centers/johnson/pdf/606877main_FS-2011-11-057-JSC-astro_trng.pdf

@project-lumen I'm not applying specifically as a character artist, since I'm not confident with being able to do sprites that look consistently similar, but here's an example of my style! I unfortunately don't have any examples of the "smaller things" I mentioned applying for, but this is how I draw (overall this took me about 5 days to do, likely about 18-20 actual hours of work.) Also dw about the image quality, it's just a screenshot, I can get better resolution.

Also, for my application as a writer, I offer thee an example of my work from Ao3

Drowning in the Deep Blue Sea, You're Still There for Me

It's not a rickroll I promise ;)

Also because it almost certainly matters, I have now seen all six seasons from Scott's PoV, so I am caught up on the series