What kind of astronauts are there

Other requirements are based on the astronaut position, as outlined below:. According to nasa. Their pay grade is determined according to their academic achievements and experience. How Stuff Works-Astronaut. The American Institute of Aeronautics and Astronautics. Aerospace Industries Association Internships.

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William Randolph Lovelace proposed the idea of female astronauts in early He argued that women are smaller and lighter, require less oxygen and cope better with stress. Lovelace recruited 24 women to participate in a program that became known as First Lady Astronaut Trainees.

One of those trainees was Jerrie Cobb. Although she never flew in space, Cobb underwent physical tests similar to those taken by the Mercury astronauts, passing all training exercises and ranking in the top two percent of all astronaut candidates of both genders. It would be another 23 years before an American woman traveled into space. Sign up for our Newsletter! Mobile Newsletter banner close. Mobile Newsletter chat close. Mobile Newsletter chat dots. Mobile Newsletter chat avatar.

The pilot assists the commander in controlling and operating the vehicle and may assist in the deployment and retrieval of satellites using the remote manipulator system RMS , referred to as the robot arm or mechanical arm. Mission specialists perform extravehicular activities EVAs , or spacewalks, operate the remote manipulator system, and are responsible for payloads and specific experiment operations. Payload specialists are persons other than NASA astronauts including foreign nationals who have specialized onboard duties; they may be added to Shuttle crews if activities that have unique requirements are involved and more than the minimum crew size of five is needed.

First consideration for additional crew members is given to qualified NASA mission specialists. When payload specialists are required they are nominated by NASA, the foreign sponsor, or the designated payload sponsor. Although payload specialists are not part of the Astronaut Candidate Program, they must have the appropriate education and training related to the payload.

All applicants must meet certain physical requirements and must pass NASA space physical examinations with varying standards depending on classification. If you are not a citizen of the United States, you may wish to contact the appropriate government agency within your own country.

How do the astronauts train using the robotic arm on Earth, seeing there is gravity? Would the arm support its own weight on Earth? For robotic arm training, the astronauts use several different simulators, with each possessing its own strengths. Each one has actual switches and hand controllers to manoeuver a computer model of the arm and the payload. This simulator utilizes real hardware, which includes a hydraulic robot arm, payload mock-ups, and cameras.

This is used to train the crew in joint EVA and arm operations. The camera views and window views are computer generated graphics of the payload used for that particular mission. Each simulator models the correct arm dynamics and boom flex, so that the astronauts learn how the arm will respond to inputs and stop commands. The switches and controls are nearly identical to the real arm, but the payloads that are picked up are volumetrically equivalent to the real payload.

This is not done for training, but only for flight arm testing, as the arm can only be manoeuvered in two degrees of freedom. Gravity is an amazing thing. The 21st century promises the challenge for humans to live and work in space. What specific roles are the commander and pilot responsible for during the mission?