NASA's 2025 Astronaut Candidates Reach Midpoint of Two-Year Training

Since their public unveiling in September 2025, NASA’s newest astronaut class has progressed to the midway point of an intensive two-year curriculum at Johnson Space Center in Houston. The program blends scientific and operational training, with recent geology modules conducted at the Rio Grande del Norte National Monument and in Iceland to support future Artemis lunar expeditions. Flight preparation this summer included high-altitude research flights aboard WB-57 aircraft and the start of supersonic T-38 jet training, complemented by altitude-chamber sessions that simulate space-like pressure environments.

Candidates also practiced water-survival scenarios in the Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory, while undertaking intensive Russian language and cross-cultural courses. Ongoing instruction covers spacecraft systems, spacewalk techniques, and emergency repair procedures. The class is slated to graduate in 2027 and join NASA’s active astronaut corps for upcoming missions to the International Space Station, the Moon and eventually Mars.