The countdown is on: Anyone who wants to apply to the European space agency Esa as an astronaut has only a few days left.
The application deadline is Friday (June 18).
It is the first time in a decade that Esa is looking for new astronauts.
Originally the deadline was supposed to end on May 28th.
Applications can be submitted online. The selection process has six stages - the new space crew will not be determined until 2022. The requirements for the special job are high: Applicants must, for example, have at least a master’s degree in natural sciences, engineering, mathematics or computer science. There are requirements for height, the maximum age limit is 50 years - and there are numerous other requirements.
"On behalf of all of humanity, space travelers test the limits of the human body in space, conduct research, support the development of new technologies and explore the wonders of the universe in one of the most extreme environments there is," says Esa about the extraordinary job . The astronauts are mainly stationed at the European Astronaut Center in Cologne, but could also be deployed in other places around the world - and of course in space.
Germany’s most famous astronauts at the moment are probably Alexander Gerst, also known as “Astro-Alex”, and Matthias Maurer. Gerst has been the German who has been in space the longest since his return from the International Space Station (ISS) in December 2018. The Saarland bricklayer is scheduled to fly to the ISS at the end of 2021. The two are also part of the Esa astronaut crew.