astronaut

Table of Contents

References & Edit History Quick Facts & Related Topics

Images & Videos

Robert Gibson and Vladimir Dezhurov

Pavel Popovich on Vostok 4

John Glenn entering Friendship 7

Valentina Tereshkova

Robert L. Satcher, Jr.

What does it take to become an astronaut?

astronaut training

Richard R. Arnold II

For Students

Robert Gibson and Vladimir Dezhurov

astronaut summary

Read Next

Astronauts Neil A. Armstrong (center), command pilot, and David R. Scott (right), pilot of the Gemini-8 prime crew, are suited up for water egress training aboard the NASA Motor Vessel Retriever in the Gulf of Mexico. At left is Dr. Kenneth N. Beers, M.D., Flight Medicine Branch, Center Medical Office. Training for Gemini 8, Gemini-titan-8. January 15, 1966

How Gemini 8 Made History and Avoided Disaster

The Space Shuttle Columbia soars from Launch Pad 39A on July 1 1997 to begin the 16-day STS-94 Microgravity Science Laboratory-1 (MSL-1) mission.

12 Questions About the History of Space Exploration Answered

Timeline of the Apollo missions. space exploration, infographic

Timeline of the Apollo Space Missions

October 18, 2019. NASA astronaut Jessica Meir waves at the camera during a spacewalk with fellow NASA astronaut Christina Koch (out of frame). They ventured into the vacuum of space for seven hours and 17 minutes to swap a failed battery charge-discharge unit (BCDU) with a spare during the first all-woman spacewalk. The BCDU regulates the charge to the batteries that collect and distribute solar power to the orbiting lab's systems.

7 Questions for Astronaut Jessica Meir

Discover

Ice Sledge Hockey, Hockey Canada Cup, USA (left) vs Canada, 2009. UBC Thunderbird Arena, Vancouver, BC, competition site for Olympic ice hockey and Paralympic ice sledge hockey. Vancouver 2010 Olympic and Paralympic Winter Games, Vancouver Olympics

10 Best Hockey Players of All Time

NBA Lakers Celtics Finals Kevin Garnett shooting.

10 Great Sports Rivalries

The Colosseum, Rome, Italy. Giant amphitheatre built in Rome under the Flavian emperors. (ancient architecture; architectural ruins)

New Seven Wonders of the World

Chinese pictograph, calligraphy tablet of Huang Tingjian, a famous calligrapher in Ancient Song Dynasty. The background of Chinese cultural elements.

The World’s 5 Most Commonly Used Writing Systems

Illustration for Demystified "How Dangerous is Quicksand"

How Deadly Is Quicksand?

Marriage. A couple getting married during a church wedding ceremony. (religion, ceremony, bride, groom)

The Seven Sacraments of the Roman Catholic church

African Americans demonstrating for voting rights in front of the White House as police and others watch, March 12, 1965. One sign reads, "We demand the right to vote everywhere." Voting Rights Act, civil rights.

Timeline of the American Civil Rights Movement

astronaut: Facts & Related Content

Written and fact-checked by The Information Architects of Encyclopaedia Britannica

News •

Scientists sent beans into orbit and made ‘space miso.’ Here’s how it tasted • Apr. 2, 2025, 5:56 AM ET (CNN)

Facts

Also Known As	taikonaut • cosmonaut • yuhangyuan

Photos and Videos

Robert Gibson and Vladimir Dezhurov

Pavel Popovich on Vostok 4

John Glenn entering Friendship 7

Valentina Tereshkova

Robert L. Satcher, Jr.

astronaut training

Richard R. Arnold II

International Space Station: transfer of supplies and equipment

What does it take to become an astronaut?

NASA's journey to landing a man on the Moon

Who is Mae Jemison, the first African American female astronaut?

Living in weightlessness: Life on the International Space Station

See All Videos and Images →

Topics

spacewalk extravehicular activity backpack untethered spacewalk crewed spacecraft space exploration spaceflight space law spacecraft space elevator Moon exploration

Key People

Raja Chari

Raja Chari

American astronaut

Chris Hadfield

Chris Hadfield

Canadian astronaut

Nicole Aunapu Mann

Nicole Aunapu Mann

American astronaut

Jasmin Moghbeli

Jasmin Moghbeli

American astronaut

Anne McClain after her first spaceflight

Anne McClain

American astronaut

Jessica Watkins

Jessica Watkins

American astronaut

Russell Louis Schweickart

American astronaut

Norishige Kanai

Norishige Kanai

Japanese astronaut

International Space Station: Kjell Lindgren

Kjell Lindgren

American astronaut

Frank Rubio on the International Space Station

Frank Rubio

American astronaut

Koichi Wakata

Koichi Wakata

Japanese engineer and astronaut

Kate Rubins

Kate Rubins

American astronaut

Kayla Barron

Kayla Barron

American astronaut

Fighter pilot, astronaut, and rocket scientist Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair

Prasanth Balakrishnan Nair

Indian fighter pilot and astronaut

The first African American astronaut

Robert Henry Lawrence, Jr.

American astronaut

Jonny Kim

Jonny Kim

Korean-American Navy SEAL, doctor, aviator, and astronaut

Joseph Acaba

Joseph Acaba

American astronaut

Jessica Meir on a space walk

Jessica Meir

American astronaut

Stephanie Wilson

Stephanie Wilson

American astronaut

From pilot to astronaut: Shubhanshu Shukla

Shubhanshu Shukla

Indian astronaut

Quiz

Hindenburg zeppelin crashing, 1937

Transportation and Technology Firsts Quiz

Edwin E. Aldrin (Buzz Aldrin) stands on the moon, Apollo 11

Famous Astronauts and Cosmonauts

View of the Andromeda Galaxy (Messier 31, M31).

Astronomy and Space Quiz

Nicolaus Copernicus. Nicolas Copernicus (1473-1543) Polish astronomer. In 1543 he published, forward proof of a Heliocentric (sun centered) universe. Coloured stipple engraving published London 1802. De revolutionibus orbium coelestium libri vi.

All About Astronomy

List

The Space Shuttle Columbia soars from Launch Pad 39A on July 1 1997 to begin the 16-day STS-94 Microgravity Science Laboratory-1 (MSL-1) mission.

12 Questions About the History of Space Exploration Answered