Harman Patil (Editor)

Astronauts for Hire

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Industry
  
Aerospace

Headquarters
  
Titusville

Type
  
Nonprofit organization

Website
  
astronauts4hire.org

Founded
  
12 April 2010

Astronauts for Hire httpsuploadwikimediaorgwikipediacommonsthu

Key people
  
Brian Shiro: CEO Jason Reimuller: COO Kristine Ferrone: CFO Joseph Palaia: Secretary Amnon Govrin: CTO Jamie Guined: Business Development Officer Erik Seedhouse: Chief Training Officer

Similar
  
Commercial Spaceflight Federation, Space Frontier Foundation, Mars Society, National Space Society, Students for the Explorati

Profiles

Astronauts for Hire (A4H) is a nonprofit corporation whose mission is "to increase the competitiveness of commercial astronaut candidates by providing skills training, facilitating forums for candidate communication, engaging with potential employers, and inspiring the next generation."

Contents

Background

Astronauts for Hire, Inc. (also known as "Astronauts4Hire" and "A4H") was incorporated as a nonprofit in the state of Florida on April 12, 2010.

The organization was established with the intent of training groups of scientist-astronauts and making them available for hire. Research institutions, principal investigators and private spaceflight companies would engage these individuals to conduct experiments in suborbital and eventually orbital space, as opposed to sending their own personnel on these missions.

In 2011, an inaugural class of flight and associate members completed emergency egress and sea survival training, suborbital research scientist training, spatial orientation-disorientation testing and acclimation.

Astronauts for Hire has been featured in Discover Magazine, Nature, New Scientist, Aviation Week and Space Technology among others. The organization received extensive press coverage following its test of the first beer specifically intended to be consumed in space, targeted at the emerging space tourist market.

Existing members

The organization currently has nineteen Flight Members. They are:

  • Christopher Altman
  • Ben Corbin
  • Jim Crowell
  • Jon-Erik Dahlin
  • Kristine Ferrone
  • Amnon Govrin
  • Melania Guerra
  • Mindy Howard
  • José Miguel Hurtado, Jr.
  • Kris Lehnhardt
  • Joseph E. Palaia, IV
  • Jason Reimuller
  • Luís M. R. Saraiva
  • Erik Seedhouse
  • Brian Shiro
  • Alli Taylor
  • Cosan Unuvar
  • Pavel Zagadailov
  • Luis Zea
  • New flight members - 2013

    June 3, 2013 the six new flight members chosen in this selection campaign are accomplished professionals representing diverse fields of science, engineering, medicine, and aviation.

  • Captain David Ballinger – Aviator and Aerospace Scientist, Ottawa, Canada
  • Jessica Cherry – Research Scientist and Commercial Pilot, University of Alaska Fairbanks and Northern Science Services
  • Michael Gallagher – Rural Family Physician, Alberta Health and Wellness
  • Jamie Guined – Exercise Scientist, University of Houston / NASA Johnson Space Center
  • LTC Tanya Markow, U.S. Army Aviator / Assistant Professor, United States Military Academy
  • Aaron Persad – Research Assistant and PhD candidate, University of Toronto
  • Development of Training Standards

    With the assistance of a board of advisers composed of former astronauts, astronaut training specialists, and space operations professionals, the organization is developing a comprehensive set of training standards for use in training commercial astronauts.

    Industry Partnerships

    Astronauts for Hire has entered into training partnerships with Survival Systems, USA for emergency escape, sea survival and open water rescue, and a research and training partnership with the Ashton Graybiel Spatial Orientation Laboratory (AGSOL) at Brandeis University.

    NASA Astronaut Selection Webinar

    In December 2011, in conjunction with the NASA Astronaut Corps, Astronauts for Hire held a public online seminar and discussion session on the astronaut selection process with Duane Ross, Manager for NASA Astronaut Candidate Training and Astronaut Candidate Selection.

    Participation in 2011 NSRC

    A4H was an official sponsor of the 2011 Next Generation Sub-orbital Researchers Conference (NSRC). A4H personnel assisted in the planning and execution of the event.

    Contract with Vostok Pty Ltd

    A4H was awarded a contract to provide flight research services on a Zero-G flight, for commercial company Vostok Pty Ltd, which is a joint venture between Saber Astronautics Australia and the 4-Pines Brewery. The experiment consisted of measuring the physiologic and biometric responses of alcohol consumption under conditions of weightlessness.

    Sponsors and donors

    The organization has received support from individuals and organizations including Optify, Target Process, Bob Page, Tony Webb, Doug Drexler, 4Frontiers Corporation and Mike Kronenberg.

    References

    Astronauts for Hire Wikipedia


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