NASA names nine astronauts for SpaceX and Boeing flights to space station

The crews for the first four flights on SpaceX and Boeing space taxis wave to the cameras after their introduction at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Texas. (NASA via YouTube)

NASA unveiled the first nine astronauts for its commercial crew missions to the International Space Station today, including rookies as well as seasoned veterans.

The “New Nine” include two women and seven men. All but one of them are current NASA astronauts. The ninth spaceflier is Boeing test pilot Chris Ferguson, who flew three space shuttle missions (including the last one, as commander) and now works on Boeing’s Starliner program.

NASA Administrator Jim Bridenstine introduced the astronauts during a ceremony at Johnson Space Center in Texas that was attended by members of Congress and other VIPs.

The ceremony took on a celebratory mood, in part because it presaged the first crewed trips to orbit from U.S. soil since the retirement of the space shuttle fleet in 2011. For the past seven years, the only route to space for NASA astronauts has run through Russia and its spaceport in Kazakhstan, at a price of as much as $80 million a seat.

“We are on the brink of launching American astronauts, on American rockets, from American soil,” Bridenstine said, sparking cheers and applause from the audience.

After the introductions, Bridenstine took the prerogative of posing the first question to the astronauts: How will it feel to fly?

Nicole Aunapu Mann, who’ll be making her first spaceflight on the Starliner test mission, turned to veteran astronaut Doug Hurley, who’ll be on the SpaceX Dragon’s first crewed test flight.

“I don’t know about you, Chunky, but as a test pilot, it doesn’t get any better than this,” said Mann, using Hurley’s call sign.

“No, it really doesn’t,” Hurley replied. “The first flight is something that you dream about as a test pilot, and you don’t think it’s ever going to happen to you. But it looks like it might.”

“Oh, it better,” Bridenstine chimed in.