In order to put Europe’s space flight on a secure footing, not only money is needed, but also men and women who want to experience adventures in space. ESA has unveiled the next generation of European astronauts, selected from nearly 23,000 applicants.
In the first recruitment campaign in more than a decade, parity criteria were met for the first time and people with disabilities were also included.
Five chosen ones – France’s Sophie Adenot, Spain’s Pablo Álvarez Fernández, Britain’s Rosemary Coogan, Belgium’s Raphaël Liégeois and Switzerland’s Marco Alain Sieber – are now embarking on a tough, year-long preparation for an astronaut career.
Nine applicants – including the two Germans Amelie Schoenenwald and Nicola Winter. – are trained as substitutes.
The one-year basic training is underway at the European Astronaut Center in Cologne, during which the crew learns the basics of natural sciences and engineering, learns Russian and also begins training for space flights. The newcomers then go through the one-year advanced training course, during which they are made particularly familiar with the ISS space station.
Only in the third phase of the training do the astronauts receive a specific mission and prepare for it. For about a year and a half, the future astronauts then deal with how the experiments of their mission are carried out and what the science is behind them.
ESA budget for the next three years is secured
The European Space Agency ESA does not want to fall behind in the race against countries like China or the USA. After tough budget negotiations, in which the ESA had hoped for 18.5 billion euros, the 22 countries that finance the ESA agreed in Paris on a budget of 17 billion euros for the next three years. The total, while lower than hoped, represents a 17% increase over the previous budget.