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NASA just graduated its newest class of astronauts. Out of the over 18,300 applicants from all around the United States, the District of Columbia, Guam, American Samoa, and Puerto Rico, there are the 12 who were selected. For those doing the math, that puts the odds of being selected at less than 1 in 1,500. 2017's class is full of incredibly talented people with backgrounds ranging from engineering, the Navy, the Marines, to geoscience. One of the most exciting parts? Roughly half of them are women!
They join a group of only 350 who have been chosen to become astronauts since the beginning of the space program in 1959, but they're not off to outer space just yet. Before they can become eligible to go on a mission to the International Space Station, they will report to the Johnson Space Center in Houston in August for a training program that lasts two years.
Out of the very select few who made the cut, here is a bit about the five women joining the ranks of NASA.
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