Anne Menon, a mission specialist on the recent Polaris Dawn mission, was announced as an astronaut candidate by NASA today in Houston. She joins a growing list of former SpaceX employees who have joined the ranks of NASA’s astronaut corps.
NASA announced 10 new astronaut candidates who will go through about two years of training to be prepared for missions to the ISS, the Moon, and potentially beyond. The 10 new candidates include members from the military, the private space industry, and commercial aviation.
Notably, Menon was selected to become yet another SpaceXer to don the iconic blue flight suits. However, this isn’t her first rodeo in space; she was a mission specialist on Polaris Dawn and set the female flight altitude record. Polaris Dawn’s mission, part of Jared Isaacman’s Polaris Program, was to push the boundaries of SpaceX’s Dragon spacecraft, flying at altitudes around Earth not done since the Apollo and Gemini missions.
Menon’s selection to NASA’s class of astronaut candidates is one of a growing number of selections that shows just how big an impact the private spaceflight industry is having on NASA. Before, most NASA astronauts came from military and research positions; now, there are many more avenues to becoming an astronaut than just becoming a test pilot.
Below is a list of the 10 candidates who will begin training to become NASA astronauts:
- Ben Bailey – 38, Chief Warrant Officer 3, U.S. Army
- Lauren Edgar – 40, U.S. Geological Survey
- Adam Fuhrmann – 35, Major, U.S. Air Force
- Cameron Jones – 35, Major, U.S. Air Force
- Yuri Kubo – 40, Vice President of Engineering, Electric Hydrogen
- Rebecca Lawler – 38, Test Pilot, United Airlines
- Anna Menon – 39, Senior Engineer, SpaceX/Mission Specialist, Polaris Dawn
- Imelda Muller – 34, former Lieutenant, U.S. Navy
- Erin Overcash – 34, Lieutenant Commander, U.S. Navy
- Katherine Spies – 43, Director of Flight Test Engineering, Gulfstream Aerospace Corporation
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