NASA selects Indian-American astronaut Raja Chari for manned mission to the Moon

Washington:

Raja Jon Vurputoor Chari, an Indian-American colonel in the US Air Force, is among 18 astronauts, half of them women, who have been selected by NASA for their ambitious manned mission to the Moon and more. there.

The modern lunar exploration program will put the first woman and the next man on the moon in 2024 and establish a sustainable human lunar presence by the end of the decade, the US space agency said.

NASA on Wednesday named the 18 astronauts who will train for its lunar landing program Artemis.

Raja Chari, 43, a graduate of the US Air Force Academy, the Massachusetts Institute of Technology (MIT) and the US Naval Test Pilot School, is the only Indian-American of the list.

👨‍✈️ Pilot with 2000 flight hours
🇺🇸 @USAirForce official
👨‍🚀 NASA astronaut

Get together @Astro_Raja, initial member of our @NASAArtemis equipment that will help pave the way for the next human missions on and around the Moon. pic.twitter.com/bc6ctjUL5H

– NASA Aeronautics (@NASAaero) December 10, 2020

He was selected by NASA to join the 2017 astronaut candidate class.

He submitted to service in August 2017 and having completed initial astronaut candidate training is now eligible for a mission.

My fellow citizens, I present to you the heroes of the future who will take us back to the Moon and beyond: the Artemis Generation, Vice President Mike Pence said Wednesday at NASA’s Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

It really is amazing to think that the next man and the first woman on the Moon are among the names we just read … Today we begin to reflect on a great hero from the past. The Artemis generation are the heroes of American space exploration in the future, Pence said after introducing members of Team Artemis during the eighth meeting of the National Space Council.

Team Artemis astronauts come from a wide range of backgrounds, knowledge and experience. Most of the astronauts in the group are between 30 and 40 years old. The oldest is 55, the youngest 32.

NASA will announce the flight assignments for the astronauts later, drawing from Team Artemis. Additional members of Team Artemis, including international partner astronauts, will join this group as needed.

We are incredibly grateful for the president’s and vice president’s support for the Artemis program, as well as bipartisan support for all of NASA’s science, aeronautical research, technology development and human exploration goals, said NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine.

As a result, we are excited to share this next step in exploration and appoint the Artemis Team of astronauts who will lead the way, which includes the first woman and the next man to walk on the lunar surface, he added.

The selected astronauts will help NASA prepare for the upcoming Artemis missions, which will begin next year by working with the agency’s business partners as they develop human landing systems; assist in the development of training; define hardware requirements; and consulting in technical development. They will also involve the public and industry in NASA’s exploration plans.

We have a lot of exciting work ahead of us as we return to the moon, and it will take the entire corps of astronauts to make that happen, said Chief Astronaut Pat Forrester.

Walking on the lunar surface would be a dream come true for any of us, and whatever part we can play to make that happen is an honor, “he said.

The other members of the list include Christina Koch and Jessica Meir, the two astronauts who conducted the world’s first all-female spacewalk last year.

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