Group 21 astronauts. Back row, L-R: Meir, Cassada, Glover, Morgan and Koch. Front row, L-R: McClain, Hague and Mann
Year selected
2013
Number selected
8
← 2009
2017 →
In 2011 NASA opened applications for Astronaut Group 21. The team was announced in June 2013 after a year and a half long search. With four men and four women, the class of 2013 had the highest percentage of female finalists.[1] According to NASA astronaut Kathleen Rubins, "it's… a reflection of how many really talented women are in science and engineering these days."[2] NASA received a total of over 6,300 applications, which made it the second highest number received at the time (the class of 2017 surpassed both records with a total of more than 18,300).[3]
Traditionally, the upcoming class is given a nickname by the previous class. Following this custom, the class of 2009 (also known as "The Chumps") christened the 2013 class the "Eight Balls" in reference to there being eight of them. Bob Behnken, then Chief of the Astronaut Office, stated in an interview that the name further represents that, "The eight ball [in billiards or pool] is played last and the hope from the preceding class is that the [2013 astronaut candidates] will be assigned after all of them [fly]."[4] The team consists of eight people, Jessica Meir, Ph.D., Major Nicole Mann, Lt. Commander Josh Cassada, Ph.D., Lt. Colonel Tyler Hague, Christina Koch, Major Andrew Morgan, M.D., Lt. Commander Victor Glover, and Lt. Colonel Anne McClain.
Of the five members of the group who have flown in space as of April 2020, all five place on the list of then longest spaceflights for NASA astronauts, with Koch holding the record for the longest single spaceflight for a woman. Meir and Koch were also the first women to participate in an all-female spacewalk.
^NASA (June 17, 2013), Astronaut Class of 2013, retrieved October 19, 2017
^Hiler, Katie (June 18, 2013). "NASA's New Class of Astronauts Gives Parity to Men and Women". The New York Times. ISSN 0362-4331. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
^"Popular Science Q&A: How NASA Selected The 2013 Class Of Astronauts". Popular Science. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
^"NASA's new astronaut class, the '8 Balls,' reports for training | collectSPACE". collectSPACE.com. Retrieved October 19, 2017.
and 23 Related for: NASA Astronaut Group 21 information
In 2011 NASA opened applications for AstronautGroup21. The team was announced in June 2013 after a year and a half long search. With four men and four...
NASAAstronautGroup 20 (The Chumps) saw the training of nine mission specialists, and five international mission specialists to become NASA astronauts...
NASAAstronautGroup 5 was a group of nineteen astronauts selected by NASA in April 1966. Of the six Lunar Module Pilots that walked on the Moon, three...
The NASAAstronaut Corps is a unit of the United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) that selects, trains, and provides astronauts...
NASAAstronautGroup 15 ("The Flying Escargot") was a group of 23 NASAastronauts announced on December 8, 1994. Group members adopted The Flying Escargot...
NASAAstronautGroup 3—"The Fourteen"—was a group of fourteen astronauts selected by NASA for the Gemini and Apollo program. Their selection was announced...
NASAAstronautGroup 18 (The Bugs[not verified in body]). The group saw the training of seven pilots and ten mission specialists to become NASA astronauts...
NASAAstronautGroup 14 ("The Hogs") was a group of 24 astronauts announced by NASA on 31 March 1992. The group's name derived from The Muppet Show skit...
NASAAstronautGroup 9 was a group of 19 NASAastronauts announced on May 29, 1980, and completed their training by 1981. This group was selected to supplement...
NASAAstronautGroup 16 ("The Sardines") was a group of 44 astronauts announced by NASA on May 1, 1996. The class was nicknamed "The Sardines" for being...
NASAAstronautGroup 12 (the GAFFers) was a group of 15 astronauts announced by NASA on June 5, 1987. Andrew M. Allen (born 1955), U.S. Marine Corps (3...
NASAAstronautGroup 8 was a group of 35 astronauts announced on January 16, 1978. It was the first NASA selection since Group 6 in 1967, and was the largest...
NASAAstronautGroup 6 (the "XS-11", "Excess Eleven") was a group of eleven astronauts announced by NASA on August 11, 1967, the second group of scientist-astronauts...
NASAAstronautGroup 7 was a group of seven astronauts accepted by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) on August 14, 1969. It was...
his Doctor of Medicine, and an acceptance to NASAAstronautGroup 22 in 2017. He completed his astronaut training in 2020 and was awaiting a flight assignment...
Koch (/kʊk/ COOK; born January 29, 1979) is an American engineer and NASAastronaut of the class of 2013. She received Bachelor of Science degrees in electrical...
Mercury program that had an astronaut on board from May 1961 to May 1963, and members of the group flew on all of the NASA human spaceflight programs of...
"Duke" Aunapu Mann (born June 27, 1977) is an American test pilot and NASAastronaut. She is an F/A-18 Hornet pilot and a graduate of the US Naval Academy...
Wally Schirra, Alan Shepard and Deke Slayton. The first group of astronauts selected by NASA were for Project Mercury in April 1959. All seven were military...
This is a complete list of astronauts in the United States Space Force. There have currently been two NASAastronauts who have been members of the U.S...
Steven Alan Hawley (born December 12, 1951) is a former NASAastronaut who flew on five U.S. Space Shuttle flights. He is professor of physics and astronomy...
an astronaut candidate with NASAAstronautGroup 8, the first group of NASAastronauts to include women, in January 1978. She became the Astronaut Office...
McClain (born June 7, 1979) is a Colonel in the U.S. Army, engineer and a NASAastronaut. Her call sign, "Annimal", dates back to her bruising rugby days; she...