I remember when I was young, I was always so driven towards the idea of going to space. I really wanted to be an astronaut. It was such a dream to me to go to space. It’s very specifically a way to enjoy the void of space. And the idea of being surrounded by no humans either, sounds like perfection. Especially with the idea of just looking down on individuals. Well, as it turns out, there’s a training program for astronauts that wants to build a commercial space station. And it’s all happening here, in Cape Canaveral, Florida.
What’s the details on this new training center?
Apparently, Sierra Space is creating crewed missions for a commercial space station. That’s to be built in the next couple of years. All to get astronauts ready. The company is stating that the Sierra Space Human Spaceflight Center and Astronaut Training Academy is going to train some lucky few to become NASA-level astronauts.
Essentially there are three types of astronauts that will work on the creation of the Orbital Reef. That being a space station built in partnership with Blue Origin. Professional astronauts are going to spend many months to operate and maintain the Orbital Reef. Meanwhile, there are specialist astronauts trained to conduct manufacturing and research on board. And then, experiential astronauts are going to be tourist-like individuals that get to see what space is actually like.
Now, you might wonder how Sierra Space does this?
Sierra Space is utilizing a selection process similar to NASA’s to choose the first professional astronauts in 2023. Training is certainly going to start in 2024. Sierra Space is interested for the astronauts as they begin construction of the Orbital Reef by 2026.
Also, Sierra Space has a space plane called the Dream Chaser. And chances are, it’s going to begin uncrewed missions, taking off from the Kennedy Space Center in 2023. Crews then took off in 2026.
