Your missions will reshape our understanding of Earth and space
Em Houston, dez americanos e dois cidadãos dos Emirados Árabes Unidos completaram dois anos de formação intensiva e foram oficialmente graduados como astronautas da NASA, tornando-se elegíveis para missões à Estação Espacial Internacional e para o programa Artemis, que ambiciona devolver humanos à Lua antes do fim desta década. A sua seleção, a partir de mais de 12.000 candidatos, representa não apenas uma conquista individual, mas um momento de transição na história da exploração espacial — de uma corrida movida pela Guerra Fria para uma empresa científica e estratégica de alcance geracional. A Lua, neste novo enquadramento, não é um destino final, mas um limiar.
- Mais de 12.000 pessoas concorreram a cerca de uma dúzia de vagas — os doze selecionados sobreviveram a um dos processos de seleção mais exigentes do mundo.
- Durante dois anos, os novos astronautas simularam caminhadas espaciais em piscinas gigantes, voaram em jatos supersónicos, treinaram sobrevivência no frio e estudaram russo para operar com parceiros internacionais.
- A graduação coincide com a abertura de candidaturas para a próxima classe de astronautas, com prazo até 2 de abril, sinalizando que a NASA quer expandir rapidamente a sua força de trabalho espacial.
- Harrison Schmitt, que pisou a Lua na missão Apollo 17, esteve presente e sublinhou a diferença de motivações: onde antes havia competição ideológica, hoje há objetivos científicos e estratégicos mais amplos.
- A grande questão que aguarda estes astronautas na Lua — como o corpo humano se adapta à baixa gravidade durante períodos prolongados — é também a chave para a missão seguinte: Marte.
Na terça-feira, numa cerimónia em Houston, dez americanos e dois cidadãos dos Emirados Árabes Unidos foram graduados como astronautas da NASA, concluindo dois anos de formação que começou depois de mais de 12.000 pessoas terem concorrido a pouco mais de uma dúzia de lugares. O grupo, apelidado de "The Flies", inclui engenheiros, cientistas, pilotos e médicos, provenientes tanto do meio militar como civil — todos selecionados pela resiliência e aptidão que a agência considerou indispensáveis.
Durante vinte e quatro meses, o currículo foi desenhado para simular os extremos do voo espacial. Treinaram atividade extravehicular em enormes piscinas, voaram em jatos supersónicos, completaram cursos de sobrevivência em ambientes frios e estudaram russo para coordenar com parceiros internacionais. Aprenderam os sistemas da Estação Espacial Internacional e da cápsula lunar Orion, a nave que poderá levá-los à Lua.
Na cerimónia, Jim Free, administrador associado da NASA, foi direto: "Estão aqui porque são excecionais. As vossas missões vão reformular a nossa compreensão da Terra e do espaço." Agradeceu-lhes por aceitarem o risco de se sentar no topo de um foguetão.
A graduação não foi anunciada isoladamente. A NASA abriu simultaneamente candidaturas para a próxima classe de astronautas, com prazo a 2 de abril, num momento em que a agência conta com 48 astronautas ativos mas enfrenta uma procura crescente. Harrison Schmitt, que pisou a Lua na Apollo 17, esteve presente e deixou claro o contraste com a era anterior: as missões dos anos 60 e 70 foram impulsionadas pela competição da Guerra Fria; o regresso à Lua hoje serve objetivos científicos e estratégicos mais vastos.
Schmitt levantou também a questão que ocupará estes novos astronautas se chegarem à superfície lunar: como se adapta o corpo humano à baixa gravidade durante períodos prolongados? A resposta importa para a exploração lunar, mas sobretudo para o horizonte seguinte — Marte. O programa Artemis, tal como a NASA o concebe, não termina na Lua. A Lua é um campo de treino e uma escala. Esta "geração Artemis" está a ser preparada para uma arquitetura de missão que se estende muito além da superfície lunar.
Ten Americans and two citizens of the United Arab Emirates walked out of a Houston ceremony on Tuesday as newly minted astronauts, their two years of relentless training finally complete. They are now eligible for assignment to the International Space Station, but more significantly, they are candidates for NASA's Artemis missions—the agency's push to land humans on the Moon again before the decade closes.
The cohort, nicknamed "The Flies," emerged from a selection process that began in 2021, when more than 12,000 people applied for roughly a dozen spots. What made these ten and two others stand out enough to survive that winnowing? They came from varied backgrounds—engineers, scientists, pilots, physicians—drawn from both military and civilian life. But all of them had demonstrated the kind of resilience and aptitude that NASA believed could withstand what came next.
For twenty-four months, they endured a curriculum designed to prepare them for the extremes of spaceflight. They suited up in spacesuits and practiced extravehicular activity in an enormous swimming pool, the water simulating weightlessness. They flew supersonic jets to understand the physics of high-speed flight. They completed survival training in cold environments. They studied Russian—still essential for coordination with international partners aboard the space station. They learned the systems of the ISS and the Orion lunar capsule, the spacecraft that will carry them toward the Moon.
Jim Free, NASA's associate administrator, addressed them during the graduation ceremony with a directness that acknowledged what they had chosen. "You are here because you are exceptional," he told them. "Your missions will reshape our understanding of Earth and space." He thanked them for agreeing to risk their lives, to sit atop a rocket and ride it into orbit.
The timing of this graduation is not incidental. NASA announced simultaneously that it is opening applications for the next astronaut class, with a deadline of April 2. The agency currently has 48 active astronauts—people eligible for missions—but demand is growing. The space economy has transformed since the Apollo era. There are more opportunities now, more destinations, more reasons to go. Harrison Schmitt, who walked on the Moon as part of Apollo 17, attended the ceremony and made this point explicit: the lunar missions of the 1960s and 70s were driven by Cold War competition, but today's return to the Moon is motivated by broader scientific and strategic goals.
Schmitt also raised a question that will occupy these new astronauts if they fly to the Moon: Can humans adapt to low gravity over extended periods? The answer matters not just for lunar exploration but for the longer journey ahead—to Mars. The Artemis program, as NASA frames it, is not an end in itself. The Moon is a proving ground and a waystation. These ten Americans and two Emiratis, the "Artemis generation," are being trained for a mission architecture that extends far beyond the lunar surface.
Citas Notables
You are here because you are exceptional. Your missions will reshape our understanding of Earth and space.— Jim Free, NASA associate administrator
The Moon calls us again, for more reasons than in the past. We need to establish international rules about managing lunar resources to avoid future conflicts.— Harrison Schmitt, Apollo 17 astronaut
La Conversación del Hearth Otra perspectiva de la historia
What made these twelve people different from the 12,000 who applied?
NASA doesn't publish the exact criteria, but they were looking for people who could handle extreme stress, learn complex systems quickly, and work in isolation. The backgrounds varied—some were military test pilots, others were scientists or engineers with no flight experience. What they shared was a kind of intellectual and physical resilience.
Two years of training seems like a long time. What were they actually doing?
It's not classroom work. They were in a swimming pool in spacesuits learning to move in weightlessness. They were flying T-38 jets at supersonic speeds. They were in the Arctic learning survival skills. They studied Russian because the International Space Station is a joint project with Russia. It's designed to break you down and rebuild you as someone who can function when things go wrong 250 miles above Earth.
Why did NASA announce the next recruitment class on the same day these twelve graduated?
Because the demand is real. Artemis is not a one-shot mission like Apollo. NASA is planning sustained lunar operations, multiple missions, a base. The space station still needs crews. Private companies are launching their own missions. There simply aren't enough trained astronauts to fill all the seats.
Harrison Schmitt mentioned something about low gravity and Mars. What did he mean?
If humans are going to spend months on the Moon, we need to know whether their bodies can adapt to one-sixth Earth's gravity. Can muscles and bones stay healthy? Does the cardiovascular system adjust? The answers will determine whether we can actually send people to Mars, where the gravity is also low but the journey takes six months each way.
So these twelve are not just astronauts. They're test subjects for something bigger.
They're both. They're highly trained professionals who will conduct scientific experiments and operate complex equipment. But yes, their bodies will be gathering data that informs whether human Mars exploration is even feasible. That's part of what Schmitt meant when he said their missions will reshape our understanding.