Chari will become the third Indian American to explore space
Indian American Raja Chari is among the 12 new astronauts selected by NASA, to visit space in its future manned mission. Chari will become the third Indian American after Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams to explore space.
After receiving a record-breaking number of applications to join an exciting future of space exploration, NASA recently selected its largest astronaut class since 2000.
Rising to the top of more than 18,300 applicants, NASA chose 12 astronaut candidates comprising of seven men and five women, who will be trained for expeditions to Earth’s orbit and to deep space.
Lt Col Raja Chari, a commander of the 461st Flight Test Squadron and the director of the F-35 Integrated Test Force at Edwards Air Force Base in California, is one among the 12 new astronauts selected by NASA.
“Meet Raja Chari, one of our 12 #NewAstronauts! He’s a @usairforce Lt. Col. from Cedar Falls, IA. Learn more:
https://www.nasa.gov/astronauts/biographies/raja-chari “, NASA Astronauts tweeted assuring Chari’s inclusion in the list.
Meet Raja Chari, one of our 12 #NewAstronauts! He's a @usairforce Lt. Col. from Cedar Falls, IA. Learn more: https://t.co/m3uvJZD3iS pic.twitter.com/IjWf4lO1CX
— NASA Astronauts (@NASA_Astronauts) June 7, 2017
The eligibility criteria that NASA looked up for their astronaut candidates include people who can meet certain physical requirements along with education and experience criteria – such as having a bachelor’s degree in a STEM field or accumulating up to 1,000 hours of piloting jets.
Raja Chari, 39, Lt. Col., US Air Force, hails from Waterloo, Iowa. He graduated from the US Air Force Academy with bachelor’s degrees in astronautical engineering and engineering science. He continued on to earn a master’s degree in aeronautics and astronautics from Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and graduated from the US Naval Test Pilot School.
The astronaut candidates will return to Johnson in August to begin two years of training. Then they could be assigned to any of a variety of missions, including performing research on the International Space Station, launching from American soil on spacecraft built by commercial companies, and departing for deep space missions on NASA’s new Orion spacecraft and Space Launch System rocket.
“We look forward to the energy and talent of these astronauts fueling our exciting future of discovery,” acting NASA Administrator Robert Lightfoot said in a statement. “Between expanding the crew on board the space station to conduct more research than ever before, and making preparations to send humans farther into space than we’ve ever been, we are going to keep them busy. These candidates are an important addition to the NASA family and the nation’s human spaceflight team.”
Vice-President Mike Pence joined NASA leaders, including acting administrator Robert Lightfoot and director of flight operations Brian Kelly, in Houston, Texas to announce the new astronaut candidates, or “ascans”.
“These are 12 men and women whose personal excellence and whose personal courage will carry our nation to even greater heights of discovery and who I know will inspire our children and our grandchildren every bit as much as your forebears have done so in this storied American program,” said Vice President Pence. “And to this newest class of astronauts, it’s my honor to bring the sincere congratulations of the 45th President of the United States of America, President Donald Trump. Your President is proud of you, and so am I.”
Applicants included US citizens in all 50 states, the District of Columbia, and US territories Puerto Rico, Guam, and American Samoa. The 12 new candidates include six military officers, three scientists, two medical doctors, a lead engineer at SpaceX and a NASA research pilot.
The talented women and men selected for the new astronaut class represent the diversity of America and the career paths that can lead to a place in America’s astronaut corps.
“These women and men deserve our enthusiastic congratulations,” said astronaut and Johnson Space Center Director Ellen Ochoa. “Children all across the United States right now dream of being in their shoes someday. We here at NASA are excited to welcome them to the team and look forward to working with them to inspire the next generation of explorers,” she added.
Since the original Mercury 7 in 1959, with the inclusion of these 12 members of the 2017 astronaut candidates, NASA has selected a total of 350 astronauts till date.