\n<\/p>\n
Do you dream of leaving the planet?<\/p>\n
NASA is looking for its next group of astronauts, and you have until April 2 to make a pitch for yourself.<\/p>\n
\u201cTypically, it\u2019s a very popular application,\u201d April Jordan, NASA\u2019s astronaut selection manager, said.<\/p>\n
The odds that you will be chosen are slim. The last time NASA put out a call for applications, in 2020, more than 12,000 people applied.<\/p>\n
It took the agency a year and a half to go through the applications. NASA selected just 10 of the hopefuls, or 0.083 percent. That makes Harvard\u2019s 3.5 percent acceptance rate among high school applicants appear bountiful.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cSo when I say \u2018popular,\u2019\u201d Ms. Jordan said, \u201cit\u2019s probably an understatement.\u201d<\/p>\n
Ms. Jordan is on a media tour to spread the word that \u201cthe right stuff\u201d for being an astronaut in 2024 is not the same as what it was in the 1960s, when astronauts were all white men, almost all from the military.<\/p>\n
Joining her on that tour, which included a stop at The New York Times, was Victor Glover, a nine-year veteran of the astronaut corps who offered a glimpse into how he made it through the rigorous selection process.<\/p>\n
To become a NASA astronaut today, you have to be a U.S. citizen and you must pass the astronaut physical exam.<\/p>\n
NASA does set a fairly high bar for education \u2014 a master\u2019s degree in science, technology, engineering or mathematics, followed by at least three years of related professional experience.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Beyond that, the agency tries to keep an open mind. (There is no age limit, for example, or a requirement for 20\/20 vision.)<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cWe want the group of astronaut candidates that we select to be reflective of the nation that they\u2019re representing,\u201d Ms. Jordan said.<\/p>\n
Take, for example, Mr. Glover.<\/p>\n
In some aspects, he fits the historical archetype. Before NASA, he was a Navy aviator and trained as a test pilot.<\/p>\n
He is also breaking historical barriers.<\/p>\n
In 2020, he became the first Black astronaut to serve as a crew member on the International Space Station after 20 years of astronauts living there. In 2025, he will become the first Black astronaut to fly around the moon for the Artemis II mission.<\/p>\n
To stand out in NASA\u2019s competitive application process, Mr. Glover knew he would need more than a strong r\u00e9sum\u00e9. He was particularly set on landing a good joke.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
The night before one of Mr. Glover\u2019s interviews at NASA for the 2013 class, he was asked to write an essay. The title: \u201cGirls Like Astronauts.\u201d<\/p>\n
\u201cThey\u2019re sitting in this room all day listening to all these dry answers,\u201d he recalled thinking. \u201cI\u2019m going to try to make them laugh.\u201d<\/p>\n
The essay pivoted from a punchline to poignancy, reflecting on the ways he has tried to inspire his four daughters. He also decided to be vulnerable during the interview, sharing a \u201cbone-headed\u201d moment when he risked nearly hitting the water during an air show demonstration.<\/p>\n
\u201cYou have to be able to share that information with the interview panel when you come in, because you\u2019re inevitably going to fail at something,\u201d Ms. Jordan said. \u201cAnd so there\u2019s a humbleness that you have to bring in even if you\u2019ve achieved great things.\u201d<\/p>\n
As part of the application process, Mr. Glover wrote a limerick that concluded: \u201cThis is all dizzying to me, because I gave so much blood and pee.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
Mr. Glover set his sights on going to outer space as a child, when he saw his classmates moved to tears by the Challenger disaster.<\/p>\n
His space ambition deepened years later when he heard a speech from Pam Melroy, a former space shuttle commander. Ms. Melroy, now NASA\u2019s deputy administrator, recounted how her crew had scrambled to fix a damaged solar array on the International Space Station.<\/p>\n
\u201cI thought, \u2018Wow, she just talked about something really technical, really logistically challenging,\u2019\u201d Mr. Glover said. \u201cBut the emotion in it was about the people.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
He realized, then, that just as astronauts need technical ability, they also need something that is more difficult to teach: social skills.<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
\u201cYou\u2019re going to live in this tin can with somebody for six months,\u201d he said of a stay on the space station. \u201cWe\u2019re almost picking family members.\u201d<\/p>\n
Mr. Glover proudly points to the diversity of backgrounds among current astronauts. \u201cIf you compare our office to the country\u2019s demographics, we match the country very well,\u201d he said.<\/p>\n
Indeed, the diversity within NASA outpaces that of the private sector in some aspects. The percentage of Black astronauts is higher than the percentage of Black people in the broader science and technology work force, Mr. Glover said.<\/p>\n
That is the direct result of NASA\u2019s sustained efforts over a couple of decades to recruit astronauts beyond the traditional archetype, he said.<\/p>\n
\u201cOur office looks the way it looks because of this intentionality, and thinking about our biases and how it may affect who we hire\u201d he said. \u201cI think that\u2019s a huge victory.\u201d<\/p>\n<\/div>\n<\/div>\n
But Mr. Glover acknowledged that diversity as a hiring goal was becoming increasingly fraught.<\/p>\n
Critics include Elon Musk, the billionaire who runs SpaceX, the rocket company that NASA relies on to transport cargo and astronauts \u2014 like Mr. Glover \u2014 to the International Space Station. NASA has also hired SpaceX to land astronauts on the moon.<\/p>\n
\u201cHis perspective on some things is a little disturbing,\u201d Mr. Glover said of Mr. Musk.<\/p>\n
SpaceX did not respond to a request for comment by Mr. Musk.<\/p>\n