NASA recently disclosed that they will soon accept applications for hiring astronauts who will be going to Mars and the International Space Station in the future missions. The official website of National Aeronautics And Space Administration (NASA) posted that applications will be accepted from December 14th till mid-February and by mid of 2017 the agency will released the names of the selected candidates. The post further stated that the agency is willing to choose US citizens from diverse background, including engineers, pilots, doctors, and scientists.

About the prospects of the selected candidates this post discloses ‘The next class of astronauts may fly on any of four different U.S. vessels during their careers: the International Space Station, two commercial crew spacecraft currently in development by U.S. companies, and NASA’s Orion deep-space exploration vehicle.’

Charles Bolden, NASA Administrator, says,

This next group of American space explorers will inspire the Mars generation to reach for new heights, and help us realize the goal of putting boot prints on the Red Planet,

Speaking about the future of NASA and space missions Brian Kelly, director of Flight Operations at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, stated,

NASA has taken the next step in the evolution of our nation’s human spaceflight program – and our U.S. astronauts will be at the forefront of these new and challenging space flight missions. We encourage all qualified applicants to learn more about the opportunities for astronauts at NASA and apply to join our flight operations team.

The qualifications of the applicants are bachelor’s degree in engineering, physical science, biological science, or mathematics from any accredited institution and an advanced degree will be appreciated. Candidates must have minimum of 3 years related or progressively responsible professional expertise, or must complete minimum of 1,000 hours duration of pilot-in-command in a jet aircraft. The final qualification being, the candidate must clear NASA long-duration spaceflight physical.