Get to Know the 9 Astronauts Set to #LaunchAmerica

Our Commercial Crew Program is

working with the American aerospace industry to develop and operate a

new generation of spacecraft to carry astronauts to and from low-Earth orbit!

As we prepare to launch humans from American soil for the first time since the final space shuttle mission in 2011, get to know the astronauts who will fly with Boeing and SpaceX as members of our commercial crew!

Bob

Behnken

Bob Behnken served as Chief of the NASA Astronaut Office from July 2012 to July

2015, where he was responsible for flight assignments, mission preparation, on-orbit

support of International Space Station crews and organization of astronaut

office support for future launch vehicles. Learn more about Bob. 

Eric Boe

Eric

Boe first dreamed of being an astronaut at age 5 after his parents woke him up to

watch Neil Armstrong take his first steps onto the lunar surface. Learn more

about Eric.

 Josh

Cassada 

Josh Cassada  holds a Master of Arts Degree and a Doctorate in Physics with a

specialty in high energy particle physics from the University of Rochester, in

Rochester, New York. He was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2013, and his first

spaceflight will be as part of the Commercial Crew Program. Learn more about

Josh.

Chris Ferguson

Chris

Ferguson served as a Navy pilot before becoming a NASA astronaut, and was

commander aboard Atlantis for the final space shuttle flight, as part of the

same crew as Doug Hurley. He retired from NASA in 2011 and has been an integral

part of Boeing’s CST-100 Starliner program. Learn more about Chris. 

Victor

Glover

Victor Glover was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2013 while working as a Legislative Fellow in the United States Senate. His first spaceflight will be as part of the Commercial Crew Program. Learn more about Victor. 

Mike

Hopkins

Mike Hopkins was a top flight test engineer at the United States Air Force Test

Pilot School. He also studied political science at the Università degli Studi

di Parma in Parma, Italy, in 2005, and became a NASA astronaut in 2009. Learn

more about Mike.

Doug Hurley

In

2009, Doug Hurley was one of the record-breaking 13 people living on the space

station at the same time. In 2011, he served as the pilot on Atlantis during the

final space shuttle mission, delivering supplies and spare parts to the

International Space Station. Now, he will be one of the first people to launch

from the U.S. since that last shuttle mission. Learn more about Doug.

Nicole Mann

Nicole

Mann is a Naval Aviator and a test pilot in the F/A-18 Hornet. She was selected

as a NASA astronaut in 2013, and her first spaceflight will be as part of the Commercial

Crew Program. Learn more about Nicole.

Suni

Williams 

Suni Williams has completed 7 spacewalks, totaling 50 hours and 40 minutes. She’s

also known for running. In April 2007, Suni ran the first marathon in space,

the Boston Marathon, in 4 hours and 24 minutes. Learn more about Suni.

Boeing and SpaceX are scheduled to complete their crew flight tests in mid-2019 and April 2019, respectively. Once enabled, commercial transportation to and from the

International Space Station will empower more station use, more research time and more

opportunities to understand and overcome the challenges of living in space, which is critical for us to create a sustainable

presence on the Moon and carry out missions deeper into the solar system, including Mars! 

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