So as some of you may know and other may not, I have always dreamed of being an astronaut. Nearly every night living back in Edmonton, before I would go to bed I would go outside and stare up. Whether it was +25 or -25 it didn't matter. And I wasn't searching for constellations (to tell you the truth I couldn't even name anything after the big dipper and Orion's belt), no, I was just staring, imagining being up there.
As I've advanced through school it's always been in my head. I love aeronautics engineering, I love everything that flies. But the true dream has always been to fly higher.
The first news broke last September as NASA announced they were looking to hire 10-15 astronauts, to replace those that will be retiring over the next years. The deadline to hire will be July 1st with the selection being made by May 2009.
Then just last week the announcement came from the Canadian Space Agency that due to two retirements, they would be holding a recruitment campaign to hire two more astronauts.
Astronauts aren't hired everyday, in fact they aren't hired very often at all. The last time the Canadian Space Agency held a recruitment campaign was 1992.
So the fact that the two agencies that I am able to apply to (dual citizenship Canada and USA for those that don't know) is incredible. It basically means that my chance is NOW. The next time another large scale recruitment like this happens could be another 10-15 years.
And actually the timing kind of sucks. For astronauts they want experience, NASA lists 3 yrs work experience as a pre-req. And I'm right on the cusp. As in, at the time of the submission date I won't have made my 3 years yet (One year work Denmark/Washington, One year Masters/Airbus Internship). But by the time the hiring is finished in May 2009, I will have barely reached 3 years. In an ideal world, this mass hiring of astronauts by both agencies wouldn't have happened for another 2-3 years. But it's happening now, so I just have to hope I can make them see in me, what I already know is there.
For me it comes down to me having a little bit of everything. I have my pilots license although not a lot of hours yet, I have my Scuba diving certificate although not a lot of dives under my belt. I have two years work experience in 4 different countries in research and in design and analysis. I have my Bachelors in Mechanical Engineering and my Masters in Aeronautics Engineering. I'm physically fit with the ability to play pretty much any sport I want. I'm working on knowing more then one language and have shown the ability to adapt to pretty much any situation. I have a ton of volunteer and public speaking experience. And of course the list will have to go on as I prepare the applications for NASA and the CSA.
The question is will it be enough. Will a little bit of everything make up for not having a plethora of experience and not being an expert in one area?
I guess the only answer to that is: we'll see.
I dream of this view:
Logan
