--- title: NASA Just Picked the First Astronauts for Commercial Space Flights description: NASA announced on Thursday the names of the first astronauts chosen to fly commercial space flights. canonical: https://time.com/3951355/nasa-astronauts-commercial-space-flight/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2015-07-09T16:36:56.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-08-04T07:41:21.984Z article:section: Science og:title: NASA Just Picked Astronauts for Commercial Space Flights og:description: They "are blazing a new trail, a trail that will one day land them in the history books" og:url: https://time.com/3951355/nasa-astronauts-commercial-space-flight/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb0c948c1b5cc1865/69885a41cd1bba45486fc334/astronaut-composite.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1600 og:image:height: 900 og:image:alt: astronaut composite og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: NASA Just Picked Astronauts for Commercial Space Flights twitter:description: They "are blazing a new trail, a trail that will one day land them in the history books" twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/bltb0c948c1b5cc1865/69885a41cd1bba45486fc334/astronaut-composite.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # NASA Just Picked the First Astronauts for Commercial Space Flights > Sponsored content. 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Future Proof is TIME's weekly climate and energy newsletter, written by senior correspondent Justin Worland. It connects the energy transition to the decisions reshaping business, technology, policy and markets. #### Where can I follow the energy transition as a business story? Future Proof covers climate and energy as an economic and business story rather than only an environmental one. It publishes every Friday and is free at time.com/newsletters. #### Who writes Future Proof? Justin Worland, a senior correspondent at TIME and an award-winning climate journalist, writes Future Proof. #### Is Future Proof free? Yes. Future Proof is free at time.com/newsletters. ### Sources * TIME Newsletters: [time.com/newsletters](/c/time-nl-futureproof-2026q3/newsletters?i=ce551e35-eea9-4de2-98ba-ebf1417fbd37&cr=time-nl-futureproof-2026q3-v1) ## Video: A Year in Space - Ep.1: Leaving Home [Watch (HLS stream): A Year in Space - Ep.1: Leaving Home](https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/6ookw4W2.m3u8) (13:31)  _Published 2021-03-11. A Year in Space - Ep.1: Leaving Home_  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jul 9, 2015 4:36 PM UTC  Clockwise from top left: Douglas G. Hurley, Sunita L. Williams, Eric A. Boe, and Robert L. Behnken. Clockwise from top left: Douglas G. Hurley, Sunita L. Williams, Eric A. Boe, and Robert L. Behnken. NASA  by [Tessa Berenson](https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jul 9, 2015 4:36 PM UTC NASA announced on Thursday the names of the first astronauts chosen to fly commercial space flights. Sending commercial flights to space is “all part of our ambitious plan to return space launches to U.S. soil, create good-paying American jobs and advance our goal of sending humans farther into the solar system than ever before,” said NASA administrator Charles Bolden [in a release](http://blogs.nasa.gov/bolden/2015/07/09/nasa-selects-astronauts-for-first-u-s-commercial-space-flights/). Robert Behnken, Sunita Williams, Eric Boe and Douglas Hurley, the four chosen astronauts, “are blazing a new trail, a trail that will one day land them in the history books and Americans on the surface of Mars,” Bolden continued. Through the commercial crew program, NASA has invited private companies to compete for contracts to send supplies and, eventually, humans to the International Space Station. Elon Musk’s SpaceX, working on one such NASA contract, [launched an ISS-bound rocket on June 28](http://time.com/3949518/elon-musk-spacex-explosion/) that exploded shortly after takeoff. [Read Next: Buzz Aldrin: SpaceX Failure Shows We Need More Commercial Space Travel—Not Less](http://time.com/3945033/buzz-aldrin-spacex-commercial-space-travel/) ### PHOTOS: 20 Breathtaking Images of Earth From Space  Aleppo, Syria, May 26, 2013 – The Citadel of Aleppo – medieval fortified palace DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Belfast, Northern Ireland, Nov. 3, 2013 – “Wish,” a large-scale art work DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Utah, USA, April 22, 2013 – Colorado River DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Cuanza River, Angola, April 28, 2013 – Cambambe Dam DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Doha, Qatar, March 4, 2013 – Artificial island spanning nearly four million sq meters. DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Dunalley, Australia, Jan. 6, 2013 – fires, false color image (red = healthy vegetation) DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Australia, April 22, 2013 – Great Barrier Reef DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Gwadar coast, Pakistan Sept. 29, 2013 – new island created by earthquake in Pakistan DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Croatia, Feb. 16, 2013 – Galešnjak (Island of Love) DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Hong Kong, China May 9, 2013 – giant rubber duck DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Madang Province, Papua New Guinea, March 22, 2013 – Manam Volcano DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Namib Desert, Namibia, May 13, 2013 – Sossusvlie area DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Naples, Italy, Feb. 19 2013 – Mount Vesuvius DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Niger, Feb. 13, 2013 – Arlit Uranium Mine DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Schooner Cays, Bahamas, May 26, 2013 DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Sochi, Russia, March 17, 2013 – Site of 2014 winter Olympics DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Near the city of Sur, Oman, Feb. 13, 2013 – massive “green tide” DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Valencia, Spain, July 19, 2013 – Palau de les Arts Reina Sofia and Gulliver Park with an enormous fiberglass model of Lemuel Gulliver trapped DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Versailles, France, Aug. 20, 2013 – Palace of Versailles DigitalGlobe—Getty Images  Xi'an, China, Sept. 24, 2013 – Shiyuan Park DigitalGlobe—Getty Images ## Transcript [00:00] [ MUSIC ] [00:09] It [00:18] is [00:27] a long [00:34] road and it is very hard. I've seen him behind the [00:37] scenes. I've seen the hard work he's put in, and here [00:40] we are, and this is the moment. And so, [00:44] it can't not Lot pull you in and a joke or two here and [00:48] there. [ MUSIC ] I [00:54] do sometimes dream of being in space. Sometimes I'll [00:57] wake up and I'll tell Miko, I had this dream I was [01:00] launching a space shuttle or a space station or [01:02] sometimes there are people with me. Like she's been [01:04] with me in my dreams, my kids have. But in reality, [01:08] while I'm up there most of humanity is 250 miles below [01:12] you. If anything goes wrong on earth. You're [01:16] not coming home [ MUSIC ] [01:19] [ INAUDIBLE ] [01:21] How's [01:23] it [01:26] going [01:28] for [01:30] you [01:33] now? It's [01:37] actually [01:42] going [01:46] pretty [01:50] good. [01:55] [ MUSIC ] [01:59] In [02:04] float [02:08] suit [02:12] Let [02:17] me [02:21] know [02:26] if you're good to stay in for another hour. Got my [02:27] [ UNKNOWN ] [02:35] [ MUSIC ] For [02:51] decades human beings as a whole and Americans in [02:55] particular have been talking about going to Mars. [02:57] Mars. As long ago as 1969, [03:01] after the Apollo 11 moon landing, people were [03:04] predicting Americans would be on Mars by 1975. It [03:09] has been a dream deferred. For half a century. [03:12] [ MUSIC ] [03:23] Getting to Mars requires multiple systems in Nasa [03:27] to be working at once. The system [03:31] that's the most fragile and destructible of all, however, [03:34] is the human body. It's the one we [03:38] didn't invent. It's the one we're stuck with. [ MUSIC ] [03:43] If [03:45] we plan to get to Mars, we have to figure out how to [03:48] make that biological machine survive in a place [03:52] it was not built to survive. [ MUSIC ] [04:04] Scott Kelly. Has been working toward this mission his [04:07] entire career. He's been working toward this mission [04:09] his entire life in some respects. [ MUSIC ] He [04:19] knows what it's like to have a football field [04:23] size piece of $ 100 billion infrastructure. In [04:28] his control and now he is going back for one year to [04:32] run one of the most important bio- medical studies [04:35] NASA has ever run [ MUSIC ] [04:42] Yeah, [04:48] the [04:54] way he misses the people, and then the weather. [05:00] It's kinda like. Well, it's going outside. There's [05:04] no sun on your face. You never feel this on my feet, [05:08] this fire. You never feel this cold breeze. It's always [05:13] exactly the same. So [05:17] I had this Texans hat. And it was completely faded and [05:21] stained and it was the best hat ever and [05:26] then I lost them. So, I went [05:30] and I bought two of the exact same hat. This one's [05:34] gonna go to Cuz I stand with me. But [05:38] then I took the other one, and I strewed him to the [05:40] fence over there. And he's going to be exposed to the [05:43] Houston weather for a year. And he's going to turn [05:47] back into old smokey for me when I get home. You're [05:49] gonna come home, and a year later, you're gonna see [05:51] earth changed something too. I hope not too much. [05:54] [ LAUGH ] We'll figure it out. When [06:00] the first time like I actually had an interaction with you [06:02] at work you came in. And I thought. It was so [06:07] weird to me now to think of. You thought it was my [06:09] brother? I couldn't tell the difference between the two [06:12] of you which is weird to me now. Because I'm like I can [06:15] tell When you; re walking away I know exactly who's [06:17] who. [ MUSIC ] Yeah, [06:22] we used to look, I guess, very much alike. To [06:26] some extent still, for people who don't know us. And [06:30] my mother used to dress us the same. Now [06:35] look at these old pictures with Orange shorts, and a [06:37] striped orange shirt, and a bow tie. [ MUSIC ] When we [06:42] were little we had our own secret language. We [06:47] did almost everything together, and I remember laying [06:50] in bed one time in the morning, and talking [06:54] to my brother about how we were gonna build an [06:55] airplane in the back yard. We just said at five or six [06:59] years old we figured we could do that. Like we had the [07:01] skill to do this. Obviously, we didn't. We didn't get very [07:05] far with the airplane or later with the spaceship. [07:11] [ MUSIC ] I think twins tend to be a little bit different. I [07:15] think their relationship is different than just siblings. [07:18] [ MUSIC ] You okay? Yep. [ MUSIC ] [07:22] So, this thing is not [07:27] meant to walk around in. [ LAUGH ] No. NASA's [07:35] doing kind of a comparative study between my brother [07:38] Mark and I, since we're identical twins. I [07:43] call him much more when I'm in space than I do on [07:46] earth. And it's because you [07:50] just feel like you're so far away, you need to try to [07:54] maintain some kind of connection. I'll [07:59] be probably more excited for him than anybody else. [08:02] I've flown four flights. This'll be his fourth flight. [08:09] For my mom's passed away, but for my dad to have [08:14] gone through this whole experience eight times now, [08:17] that's a lot. [ MUSIC ] [08:24] Throughout history people have done things that are [08:28] risky. So even though it is a risky thing to be doing, [08:32] and I think it's a lot more risky than some people might [08:34] think, it, in my mind, is worth it even [08:39] if the unfortunate And tragic [08:43] thing was to happen to myself and my crew mates, I [08:48] still think it's worth it. Being part of something that you [08:51] feel is larger than yourself [ MUSIC ] [09:05] [ INAUDIBLE ] it's going to be a long year for I'll tell you [09:08] that. Dad, I can call you from space and [09:12] harass you, just as much as I can harass you over the [09:15] phone here. You don't have to worry. Okay. Thank you. [09:20] [ LAUGH ] Got your [09:25] tunes, your headphones. [09:30] Uh- huh. [ MUSIC ] [ LAUGH ] [09:35] That was funny. [09:40] Oh. Yep. What [09:45] did you say this morning that was funny? And I told you [09:49] don't say that, yay. God. It would. What was I talking [09:55] about. Oh, when you said goodbye, dad. Goodbye, [10:00] dad. I'm going to miss your silky smoothness. Should I [10:01] show you how the remote works? I think I got it now, I [10:03] think I got it. We're on our own. I'm [10:10] going to jump in the shower. Real quick. Okay. [10:11] [ MUSIC ] [ NOISE ] Excuse me everybody! Can we be [10:11] really quiet for a sound test real quick? Sound [10:42] check. [ MUSIC ] Hello [10:58] Scott And Gabby and I just wanted to say Bon Voyage. [11:00] How do you say that? Bon Voyage. [11:05] And you know we know you only have a couple of days [11:08] in the US and then you are gone for I don't know like [11:10] five years or something. Do you know what it is? How [11:13] long? One year in space. Hey dad. I just [11:17] want you to know that I'm really gonna miss you. You [11:20] made so many sacrifices over the years for Charlotte [11:22] and I. You helped me become the person I am today. [11:26] Hi Dad, I'd like to wish you good luck [11:30] on your trip. It's exciting and you're going to be [11:34] working, but remember to take in the view. I love [11:41] you, Daddy. [ INAUDIBLE ] People ask me what am I [11:43] going to do, and I always just say, you know, I'm going [11:47] to just see how far love travels. You want [11:51] to know how long a year is. It's 31. Six [11:56] million seconds. It will be 31. 6 million times [12:00] you're on my mind. I [12:05] said to my brother I'll be in space and flying all the way [12:08] around the sun one lap at a year. And he's like so will [12:13] I. The rest of us will be doing the same thing. On [12:16] spaceship Earth. I get the question, [12:20] how does it feel to be the daughter of an astronaut. [12:22] You know he's been an astronaut since I was one [12:24] year's old, I wouldn't know anything else. I can't [12:27] compare it to anything else, so everybody's like yeah [12:30] it's so cool, your dad's an astronaut he's going to [12:33] space for a year. And for me, I'm like, yeah. He's my [12:36] dad. [ LAUGH ] You know? He's my dorky dad. The [12:39] one who gets mad at me if I don't do my home work, [12:41] or if I don't come home on time. [ LAUGH ] [12:46] He's still my dad, no matter what his job is. And And [12:50] he's a great one at that. 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