What you need to do to become an astronaut. Cosmonaut profession: description for children, information on the cosmonaut profession. What superstitions are associated with the profession of an astronaut? How Yuri Gagarin made his way to the astronauts

Flying into space is a pipe dream of millions! But over time, even she gets closer. The number of people who have already overcome gravity has exceeded five hundred. So how do you become an astronaut?

How it all began

The Soviet Union and the United States of America were not only staging an arms race. Space has also become an indicator of the strength of superpowers. The leadership of both states badly needed an answer to the question of how to be the first to go into space, no matter what! Who won this race is known to the whole world, as is the name of Yuri Gagarin. Then the Americans visited the moon several times. However, behind all these high-profile achievements and feats, they sometimes forget about the work of many people who trained the first cosmonauts.

Aircraft in those days were not particularly reliable. For example, the chance of Yuri Gagarin returning alive was calculated as one to one. Therefore, only the best were recruited into the first space squads. As a rule, only military pilots were candidates. In the United States, getting on the extended list required an insane number of flight hours and fifteen hundred skydiving! Moreover, out of more than five hundred candidates, only eight were eventually left. And there was only one to fly.

During the selection of candidates, they were subjected to inhuman tests: they were forced to survive in the desert without water and food, they were locked up for many days in isolated cells. Something similar to the latter, by the way, is applied now. But more on that later.

In our country, the selection criteria were no less severe. And it is all the more surprising that the profession of a woman-astronaut has appeared. With all due respect, Valentina Tereshkova's flight was in many ways a political decision. It was known that the female astronaut tolerates overload much worse. And Valentina Tereshkova had a very difficult time in orbit. In the Soviet Union and Russia, women who have been in space can be counted on the fingers of one hand. Such, apparently, a tradition has developed. Meanwhile, both the European Space Agency and NASA regularly send women into space. In many ways, this became possible due to the fact that flights are now more comfortable and safe. To a certain extent, of course.

Why is it so hard

A person watching television reports from the International Space Station may have a question about what is difficult there. Several people cheerfully move around in zero gravity, wave their hands to the audience, smile. From the outside it looks very cool. But in order to list all the difficulties of flight, this article simply does not have enough space.

At the start, the human body experiences overloads that are many times greater than its weight. Therefore, specialists make a chair for each astronaut based on a cast of his body. This is done so that the enormous pressure does not damage the fragile bones and internal organs of a person. The cosmonaut spends several starting minutes in a chair, often unconscious.

The next difficulty is the behavior of the organism in weightlessness. And the point here is not only a violation of the coordination of movements. After returning to Earth, astronauts cannot walk at all without the help of special devices, because the muscles of the body strongly atrophy. The full recovery process after the flight takes six months. So think, is it worth it ... And then there's the psychological component: for several months you will have to be in a small confined space in the company of unfamiliar people and work fruitfully with them.

What is the situation today

It is believed that now in Russia the popularity of both space flights and related professions has fallen sharply. Perhaps this is due to the fact that modern boys dream more of becoming businessmen, directors and presidents. And the unattainability of the goal also plays an important role. That is why the number of those wishing to become astronauts has greatly decreased. But you need to choose from someone. And it takes more than a year to prepare people for the flight. And it is not known whether this or that candidate will make it to the end of the training cycle. Meanwhile, space and science pose more and more new tasks for people. And in orbit, you have to conduct experiments every day. Therefore, being a military pilot is not enough to become an astronaut. Rather, now this is not the only way.

Three directions

It is currently believed that there are three paths through which one can get into space. The first is, as mentioned above, the career of a military pilot. Here you will need an impeccable reputation and personal business, an excellent diploma, good physical fitness and health. With all this, you can safely submit an application to the Interdepartmental Commission for the Selection of Cosmonauts (we will talk about it later).

The second path is a prestigious technical university, best of all, of course, associated with aircraft and rocketry. Having received such an education, you can get a job in a government organization that builds spaceships. And in a couple of years, feel free to apply to the same MVK. The requirements for physical and psychological training in this case are as relevant as the crystal clear past. Even an unpaid parking ticket or excessive love can prevent you from becoming an astronaut. Rest assured that the relevant authorities will turn your life inside out.

The third way is a good medical or biological university. It's no secret that qualified doctors are now needed to work on the ISS. Scientists, including biologists, are also needed to conduct various experiments. The requirements for physical, psychological and mental health are as high as in the first two cases.

Cosmonaut training center

This institution is located in Star City, in the Moscow region. Future cosmonauts are being trained at this closed facility. Some of them live on its territory, and with their families. Everyone here knows what it takes to become an astronaut. By the way, there are several options for this profession. First, you are enrolled in the squad of astronaut candidates, in which the selection continues. And only after a certain (indefinite) time, you get the status of a test cosmonaut, and with it a flight perspective. Moreover, perhaps very distant. One of the Russian cosmonauts made his first flight when he was fifty ...

Competitive selection

As mentioned above, the selection situation has changed a lot in recent years. As well as the health of the nation. And if earlier, upon detection of the slightest deviation from the norm, a strict medical commission (and there are, by the way, two of them - with different composition) would immediately reject the candidate, now it can send you for treatment (if the latter is permissible).

First time

For the first time in the history of our country, Roskosmos announced an open competitive selection for the cosmonaut corps. It happened in 2012. Moreover, the competition was really open - it was only necessary to meet certain requirements for education, physical training, etc. Anyone can get acquainted with the regulations on this selection on the website of the Cosmonaut Training Center. Naturally, Roscosmos will not hold such competitions every year. So everyone can only follow the news on the official website and get ready.

Basic selection principles

Before becoming an astronaut in Russia, you first need to obtain Russian citizenship. Further, you must have a higher education (with work experience in the specialty), no criminal record and no violations of the law in the field of protecting state secrets. Applicants over thirty-three years of age are not considered. The absence of bad habits and good health are essential. Higher education must be confirmed by a state diploma. You need work experience in your specialty (priority is given to specialists in the aerospace industry) at least five years. It also requires a good knowledge of Russian and English, confident computer skills, the ability to use the Internet and antivirus programs. It is important to know both the history of the space industry and the structure of the spacecraft, as well as the principles of flight. Abilities for self-development and psychological stability are relevant.

Finally

Now you know how to become an astronaut in Russia. But whether you will succeed is a big question. How to fly into space if the world community is now interested in completely different questions? Less and less funds are invested in science. World powers no longer participate in the space race. And now this industry is supported in our country purely for political reasons, because in a market economy, manned space flights do not bring tangible income. The only way to make money now is the launch of satellites into orbit, but the niche will soon be filled.

We have considered the question of how to become an astronaut. The choice is yours.

Greetings, my dear readers! Before the parents have time to look back, and the school is already behind. Therefore, after graduating from the initial level, teachers begin to focus on professional aptitude, giving all sorts of tests, identifying humanities and techies and distributing them to special classes. All this is to make it easier for the guys to decide on their future profession.

Albeit with a small degree of probability, but there are still daredevils who were not averse to a ride into space. But for this you need to prepare even from school, they just won't get a ticket on board a comic rocket!

So if the future Gagarin or Tereshkova is growing up in your family, then here's a guide to action. How to become an astronaut, namely: what you need to know, which medical examinations to pass and what character traits you need to have in order to devote yourself to this responsible and difficult profession and to visit outside our planet.

Lesson plan:

The profession is not for weaklings

So, I'll start right away with physiological characteristics, because if your child, due to genetic characteristics, has every chance of falling over some kind of "limiter" presented to future astronauts (well, for example, dad is 2 meters tall or shoes for most relatives of the size commercials on the 48th), then you should pay attention to other professions, while there is time to choose. And that's why.

In Russia, in 2017, those who weigh from 50 to 90 kg with a shoe size of no more than 46, with an increase in the standing position from 1.5 m to 1.9 m, sitting - from 80 cm were recruited into the "space reserve" up to 99 cm. In this case, even the chest girth (94-112 cm), the width of the hips while sitting (up to 41 cm) and the transverse shoulder size (up to 52 cm) are taken into account.

These parameters are universal, that is, they are suitable for both men and women. All this is due to the fact that you cannot tune in for each individual person who wants to "visit" outer space. The designers promise that in the near future it will be possible to get away from such rigid dimensional frames, but this is in the future, but for now, like this.

We have dealt with the anthropometric requirements. Now about the most important criterion by which applicants are most often “cut”. Have you guessed? Health!

Of course, today - these are not those demanding Soviet times, you don't need to be a master of sports. "Space" physical training for those wishing to be enrolled in the reserve is quite comparable with the TRP standards for the age group 18-29 years old. We'll have to prove strength and agility, endurance and coordination, speed and reaction.

So, for example, there is a limiting time for a kilometer distance, you need to pull up on the crossbar at least 14 times, jumping on a trampoline, be able to turn around 360 (I think most children will cope with this today!).

But if your child is rocked in a car or a plane-train, then most likely the dream of becoming an astronaut will remain a dream - they take it only with a strong vestibular apparatus.

As for character traits, as such, medical psychologists have no requirements. However, as practice shows, they do not take "pure water" for melancholic and choleric people. A future cosmonaut should be able to work in a team and be balanced, since space is not a party for you, from which you can proudly leave, puffing up your nose.

What else is important? The commission also checks your memory, level of attentiveness, ability to make decisions in an extreme situation and be able to quickly respond and concentrate when there is a lack of time to complete a task. Yes, by the way, those who are late for interviews and medical commissions are immediately put on the black list, since punctuality is also a trait necessary for an astronaut.

I would like to note right away that women who want to fly into space on an equal basis with men have no priorities, as well as indulgences. So the girls will have to go through all the tests and prove that they can and can do everything, despite the status of the "weaker sex". By the way, in the history of cosmonautics in Russia there are only three female cosmonauts, but abroad can boast of a large number of them.

Well, dear parents? Weighed the pros and cons? Didn't find a tangle and pitfalls that you can stumble over or see a way out of the situation, how to fix everything and hone the necessary skills while there is still time before graduation? Then let's move on.

When to join the squad

Although the lower age limit for the future cosmonaut has not been established, the very requirement to have a higher education in an engineering or flight specialty and work experience of at least 3 years suggests that by the time of admission to the detachment, applicants are well after 26-27 years. Unless, of course, there are no candidates who graduated from everything as an external student.

By the way, you will have to get a specialist or master's degree, bachelors do not count.

Where to begin? And you need to start with successful graduation from school in order to pave your way to the desired university. So far, there are no specialized "space" universities, and Roscosmos is inviting future graduates of Baumanka, Moscow State University and Moscow Aviation Institute into its ranks. However, the competition is open, so graduates of other educational institutions also have a chance, but again from the field of aviation and the rocket and space industry.

You can also completely get not a space and non-flight education, but one that is simply in demand in orbit, for example, a physicist or a biologist, but then you will have to work hard for 3 years at work related to space research. In general, there is a way out even for the humanities.

And yet, today the priority among those wishing to be in the ranks of astronauts belongs to those who have trained as an engineer and pilot. To enter these universities, mathematics and physics are required. Here are two main subjects that you will need to know by heart.

They will check you for knowledge of your native language, in which for admission to the main face-to-face examinations you need to have a solid "4" in your school certificate. A school certificate, by the way, together with a university diploma, is one of the documents that need to be sent to the admissions office. So learn Russian!

Candidates will be asked by the selection committee to demonstrate their ability to use a computer at the university level of knowledge of computer science, because the school "5" in this discipline will be very useful.

Given that most of space exploration is international, you will have to learn English to the level of a non-linguistic university program, so pay attention to this subject in school.

There will also be tests for the general level of knowledge in cultural studies and the history of astronautics, but this is more self-education.

It is interesting! As world statistics show, not only techies are in space. 51% are pilots, 25% are engineers, 14% are scientists, 6% are doctors, 1% are teachers and businessmen by occupation, 0.5% are programmers.

When all the studies are behind, the professional experience is earned and there is a desire to try your hand, when Roscosmos announces the next recruitment, you will need to submit documents to the Star City and prepare for an invitation to interviews and a medical commission.

The competition passed, then what?

If your brave man successfully passed all the commissions and tests and was finally enrolled in the squad, this does not mean that you can immediately collect his backpack for flight. 2 years after enrollment, candidates prepare by going through the general cosmonaut program, after which they pass the state exam for conferring the title of test cosmonaut.

The next 2 years they train in groups. Having passed 150 exams in the theory of the arrangement of the starry sky and flight dynamics, the operation of onboard equipment and the arrangement of space stations, having survived extreme training in the desert, taiga and mountains, having eaten 100 pounds of space food, they can count on a flight for which they will have to prepare for about 1 more , 5-2 years old.

In total, 6 years of hard work on yourself, and you are in space, if by that time you keep your health at the proper level and prove to the doctors that your body can endure "fire, water and copper pipes."

The year is 2031. It is for this period that the start of the Russian program for the exploration of the Moon is planned, so hurry up, future cosmonauts, great things await you! And have time to 35 years, because after this age they will no longer take!

Well, are there people who want to get on the starting line of preparation for the space reserve? Or maybe someone has been preparing diligently for a long time, day after day approaching their dream? Let us know in the comments. And subscribe to the blog news so as not to miss anything interesting)

Happy Cosmonautics Day!

High flights to you!

Alexey FEDOROV, employee of the Cosmonaut Training Center named after Yu.A. Gagarin:

First of all, you must understand what the profession of an astronaut is. And why do you want to become an astronaut. You need to go on excursions to museums dedicated to space and aviation topics, since there are many of them in our country. And you will find places for every taste. After that, I advise you to read some literature. You can read literature of a journalistic nature. You can read books of a more complex orientation - Levantovsky, Chertok and other authors.

It would also be nice to go on excursions to various enterprises in the space industry. First of all, this is, of course, an excursion to the Cosmonaut Training Center. If possible, you can also try to get to any meeting with the astronaut in order to personally ask questions that interest you. After that, after digesting all the information that you received, if you decide that you are really interested in this profession, you begin to deepen.

First of all, you should get professional knowledge. These should be either technical specialties (preferably the direction of aerospace construction), or biochemistry, geophysics, astronomy - everything that cosmonauts work with in orbit and with which our space industry encounters in everyday life. After that, if you already have a similar education or you received it, having discovered in yourself a desire to become an astronaut, you should understand how interesting and accessible the profession of an astronaut is to you. Because a person who becomes an astronaut must have a certain set of qualities. Among them, of course, should be stress resistance, the desire to always strive forward, not to stop, the ability to endure, the ability to wait. Ability to be not only sociable, but also delicate, have a sense of tact, general erudition.

The profession of an astronaut also means physical activity. Moreover, this is physical activity not only from the side of special training (such as a centrifuge, zero gravity flights and various others), but also from the standpoint of maintaining one's health. First of all, you need to familiarize yourself with the list of medical requirements, which are presented on the official websites of Roscosmos, the Cosmonaut Training Center and are available as separate documents. It clearly contains a list of all examinations that need to be passed, and parameters, especially physical, physiological, which a person who wants to become an astronaut must meet.

After that, you need to start going through this type, if I may say so, medical examination and preparation. This is a separate task that cannot be viewed simply as a passing collection of documents. Medical selection is probably the most important thing when selecting astronauts. Because space requires from us an extremely high degree of stability. Because this is an aggressive environment, extremely difficult for a person to stay in it. You need to take the collection of all health documents very seriously. And it is desirable, of course, to undergo examination in high-quality clinics, since now there are a large number of accessible government institutions or large private medical centers, in which they even take place in whole complexes. After you have prepared all this, you need to collect a large number of personal documents, collect certificates, especially certificates of admission to state secrets. Don't lose, find all your diplomas. And it will be necessary to write an autobiography, while not trying to write in it something that goes beyond human capabilities. This should be as short, clear and understandable as possible (first of all to yourself) autobiography, a description of your life. It is possible from birth, it is possible from the beginning of studies - and up to the present time. Because everything that lies deeper, if you get to the stage of face-to-face selection, will be clarified by psychologists or during professional selection as one of the final stages.

After all the documents are submitted, they are sent to the Cosmonaut Training Center, noting that this is forwarded to the selection committee. And after that comes the review period. It can take quite a long time. After that, if a person enters the full-time selection stage, he, as the documents say, “arrives at the selection point” (ie arrives at the CPC) at a certain appointed time and begins to go through the selection stages. What it is?

The selection stages are divided into the following. First, a person goes through psychological selection and selection for physical fitness. He undergoes certain tests all day long together with the CPC psychologists. These tests are aimed at determining his resistance to stress, adequacy, his ability to perform complex operator tasks. After passing these two stages of selection, if all is well, the person proceeds to physical selection. If the candidate has passed all the stages of physical and psychological preparation, he proceeds to the full-time stage of professional selection.

Professional selection consists of going through two stages. First, this is testing for operator activities. In fact, these are various tests and exercises for the ability to perform certain operator actions. It can be like controlling the marker joystick on the screen, assembling some kind of circuits, identifying a malfunction in the devices, determining the principle of operation of a certain apparatus, or working according to onboard documentation - exactly the same, absolutely real, like the one given to the acting astronaut. If the tests for the operator's activity pass normally, further tests are carried out in English and Russian. This is understandable. There is nothing particularly difficult there, although, of course, you need to prepare. The language of international communication (the language of communication on the ISS) is English. Although there is a Russian segment, and they say that we have Runglish (a mixture of Russian and English), but for the most part it is during the flight that English is used. Because all MCCs, except for Moscow, communicate with our crew members in English. And in Munich, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration, Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency), Canada, NASA (National Aeronautics and Space Administration, USA) in Houston communicate using English.

If a person has passed all these tests, then he comes to the professional selection. This is one of the most terrifying stages, for which one must prepare very seriously. Many people say: “And there is no information anywhere!”, But in fact, the information in the manual with a list of topics that may be touched upon during the professional selection is laid out in the same way together with the official selection documents on the website. The candidate is asked to write a motivational essay per day. This is a text that explains why a person wanted to become an astronaut or what the profession of an astronaut is in his understanding. Of course, a little of the topic can vary, but, as a rule, they all focus on the perception of a person, his understanding of what and who an astronaut is, and understanding why he decided to become an astronaut at all.

A certain allowance is also given per day. As a rule, this is a manual on the systems of the Soyuz spacecraft. These can be propulsion systems, or thermoregulation systems, life support systems. A person must have time to read and assimilate information in a day. It is clear that no one will ask him, as with an astronaut - to the same extent. But the candidate must show that during this time he was able to penetrate, understand the essence, understand the main reference points: how the system works, why, how it reacts to certain influences, and understand the principle of its operation, and also be able to explain it all very clearly ...

One of the very important things that is required of an astronaut is the ability to correctly formulate their thoughts. After the essay is read, the selection process begins. This includes both specialists in cosmonaut training - psychologists, doctors, language specialists, and representatives of some other departments - RSC Energia, Roskosmos. They all ask their questions. As a rule, they are interested in questions in the field of elementary physics, orbital mechanics, mathematics, algebra, understanding of the processes occurring in a ship - how it flies, why it flies, why it does not fall, how does an astronaut live, how does it survive, what is required astronaut in space, how to return to Earth. Also, a large number of questions are devoted to general erudition - understanding the structure of the world, the well-readness of a person, his cultural component (how educated he is, erudite, brought up, how he reacts to stressful questions, how he communicates with people, how qualitatively he can withstand in terms of psychological stability long conversations).

After the professional selection passes, if the person has successfully finished and at the end of the protocol it is indicated that he meets the requirements for astronaut candidates, then the person is admitted to the on-site medical selection. During the medical selection, a candidate undergoes a fairly large number of examinations not only on the territory of the CPC, but also in related organizations - such as AMBP, Burdenko Institute and many others. As a rule, these are institutions that specialize in space and aviation medicine. If all is well, then the person is allowed to take special trainings, and special examinations are carried out, such as the Coriolis acceleration chair (abbreviated KUK), which checks the stability of the vestibular apparatus, a centrifuge (a person's resistance to overload), a bicycle ergometer and a tilt table (manual verticalizer) ... These are tests of the stability of the cardiovascular system. Orthostol, as a rule, checks primarily the vessels of the brain: how correctly the outflow of blood from the head works, how the body works correctly, how it reacts to a change in its position.

First, the decision is made by a medical commission, the so-called main medical commission (GMC), which gives an opinion for the selection commission about whether a person is fit to work as an astronaut. And after that we are waiting for the end of the selection, because the decision to admit a person to the cosmonaut corps is held on a competitive basis. That is, the entire selection ends and from those candidates who have gone through the full selection cycle, they have received a positive opinion from the MMC and a positive opinion from the trade union committee, and a rating is drawn up. And already on the basis of this rating, on the basis of passing the professional selection, some many other nuances that are taken into account, based on the personality of each candidate, the selection of those units takes place that pass into the so-called new class. This is reported officially. They are invited and officially introduced to the leadership of Roscosmos, the Central Exhibition Complex and the public.

This concludes the stage of general selection of candidates for astronauts, after which the stage of general space training begins, which begins almost immediately after the end of the selection and lasts for two years, where people begin to study the basics of orbital mechanics, spacecraft systems, and many other specialties that an astronaut will not need. only for work in space, but also for the general outlook - first of all, understanding that the cosmonaut is not only an engineer, tester and operator of technology, he is also a public person who must correctly understand the current state of the world and the things around it.

At the end of the general space training stage, a person passes a state exam. In case of a good result, which is, if possible, the highest mark - 5 or 4, the person receives the status of "test cosmonaut".

So that you understand, a person who entered the cosmonaut corps immediately after selection is not yet an astronaut. He is an astronaut candidate. He is officially registered as a candidate for astronaut. And only after passing the state exam, two years after successfully passing the selection, he receives the status of a test cosmonaut.

The birth of this profession is associated with the beginning of the space age. In January 1960, the Cosmonaut Training Center (CPC) was established, and a year later, on April 14, 2 days after the historic start of Yuri Gagarin, the Presidium of the USSR Supreme Soviet established the title of Pilot-Cosmonaut.

Who are taken as astronauts

Even during the formation of the concept of manned flights, the father of the Soviet space program S.P.Korolev, not without reason, believed that military pilots should become the first cosmonauts. It is not surprising, therefore, that the first set of astronaut candidates consisted of 20 fighter pilots.

However, it soon became clear to S.P.Korolev that representatives of other professions - engineers, doctors, research scientists - were needed in space. So in 1965, on his initiative, a detachment of civilian cosmonauts was formed at the CPC, consisting mainly of engineers from the royal OKB-1, participating in the creation of space technology.

Two years later, the leadership of the Institute of Medical and Biological Problems (IMBMP) announced their intention to create their own detachment. In the 80s, its number reached 10 people, of which only two have been in space.

Since then, the concept of selecting candidates for astronauts has remained virtually unchanged. Test cosmonauts (aka crew commanders) are former Air Force pilots. Cosmonauts-engineers are, as a rule, graduates of prestigious technical universities (MAI, MVTU, Faculty of Space Research, Moscow State University, etc.), who took part in the creation of samples of space technology. Crew members may also include research cosmonauts, usually trained physicians and biologists.

How to fly into space

So, one day a person makes an important decision for himself: I want to become an astronaut. Where to begin? For a start, it's worth reading the general information. The main space employer in Russia is the Federal Space Agency, which has four selection centers in Moscow, Yekaterinburg, Vladivostok and Khabarovsk. The next recruitment is reported on the CPC website. The last 17th enrollment ended in July this year.

Astronauts, as before, are piece goods. The candidates, as before, have very strict requirements. The selection takes place in several stages. At the beginning, the commission gets acquainted with the personal file. Prerequisites: Russian citizenship, age up to 35 years, higher engineering education or flying specialty, absence of offenses.

Then - the medical board. Compared to the first set, the requirements are less stringent due to the changed conditions of stay on board the spacecraft: they have become much more comfortable and safe. However, certain standards must be met. The main one is impeccable health. The final stage is aptitude tests.

Candidates who have successfully passed all the selection stages are enrolled in the cosmonaut corps. Its full name is FGBU NII CTC named after Yu.A. Gagarin, which is located in the famous Star City near Moscow.

What it takes to fly into space

The general course lasts from 3 to 5 years, after which preparation for a specific expedition to the ISS begins. A very important feature: the new crew is formed in the process of preparation, and not in turn, that is, the most prepared ones fly. Among those enrolled in the detachment there are those who have flown several times, but there are also those who have been waiting for their "finest" hour for many years.

How to become an astronaut for a Russian woman

The male space "monopoly" did not last long: in June 1963 the first woman flew into space - Valentina Tereshkova. However, this did not change the prevailing practice, and mostly men fly into space, for which there is a simple explanation: unearthly loads are easier for them.

Valentina Tereshkova

Otherwise, the road to space for Russians, regardless of gender, is about the same. So, Valentina Tereshkova came to the cosmonaut detachment from the flying club and after the flight she graduated from the Air Force Academy. N.E. Zhukovsky. Tatiana Savitskaya is a former MAI graduate and test pilot. Space record holder Elena Kondakova is a graduate of the Moscow Higher Technical School, after which she worked at RSC Energia. The youngest, test cosmonaut Elena Serova, also graduated from the Moscow Aviation Institute, and before joining the cosmonaut corps she worked for several years at the Mission Control Center.

How about NASA?

The profession of an astronaut in the United States is very prestigious. More than 18,000 applications were submitted to NASA during the latest recruitment. As a result, only 12 people passed the most severe selection screen. By the way, Roscosmos received only 400 applications.

There are no fundamental differences in the requirements for candidates for astronauts (and cosmonauts): they must also have an excellent education - preferably a bachelor's degree in mathematics, physics, biology, engineering disciplines from one of the prestigious American universities. Work experience (at least three years) in the specialty and excellent health are required.

Other requirements include knowledge of English. However, according to Roskosmos, the level achieved as a result of passing English university programs is sufficient. It is noteworthy that knowledge in the field of cultural studies and successful passing of the exam in the Russian language are also required.

Obviously, the work of an astronaut includes a considerable thought process in a regular situation, and especially in an emergency. For this reason, candidates are required to show a high level of memorization of information, as well as skills to quickly master technical systems. It should also be noted that the priority will be those candidates who have experience in camera work in order to shoot high-quality and complete videos. Last but not least, skills such as communication and leadership skills are assessed.

Who do you need to study to become an astronaut?

As mentioned earlier, the main specialties that cosmonauts possess are engineering or flight. In addition, it is highly recommended to have experience in the aviation and rocket and space industries of the Russian Federation. Higher education is defined by degrees such as a qualified specialist or a master. Such candidates must have work experience in their specialty for at least 3 years, in the case of pilots - also a class of at least 3rd class. For representatives of other professions, there is also the possibility of being accepted into the cosmonaut corps, albeit rather small. This is possible in the case of successful passing of all entrance tests, as well as in the case when an astronaut-researcher is required, possessing this direction. Typically, such exceptions are physicians or biologists.

A complete list of documents, requirements, as well as instructions for filing an application and information on the competition are available on the Roscosmos website. Participants can send documents by mail or deliver them personally to Star City.

 

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