A retired U.S. Marine Corps major from Central Florida was among the group of 10 women and men who were announced Monday as part of NASA’s newest crop of astronaut candidates. 

After opening remarks by NASA’s Johnson Space Center Director Vanessa Wyche, Norm Knight, NASA’s Flight Operations Director, introduced the eager candidates to the world during a ceremony at Ellington Field in Houston.  

“It is a great time to be in the space business and it is a great day to be at NASA,” Knight said.

More than 12,000 people applied for the opportunity to join the ranks of NASA astronauts. During the ceremony, NASA’s Chief Astronaut Reid Wiseman thanked all of the families supporting the candidates.

“Sitting before us we have 10 Americans, 10 of our nation’s absolute finest,” Wiseman said. “You have got a huge, huge amount of work the next few years ahead of you, and it’s going to be absolutely awesome.”

Luke Delaney, 42, grew up in DeBary and graduated with a bachelor’s degree in mechanical engineering from the University of North Florida, followed by a master’s degree in aerospace engineering from the Naval Postgraduate School.

The Florida-born pilot has logged more than 3,700 flight hours on 48 different types of aircraft and has more than 550 combat flying hours. 

This turn as an astronaut candidate isn’t his introduction to NASA — Delaney worked as a research pilot at NASA’s Langley Research Center where he helped support airborne science missions.

“Just taking a part in some of those airborne science missions, modified aircraft, specialized sensors and instruments, going out and collecting atmospheric data at all regions and levels of the atmosphere, ultimately that data is being gathered and will inform decisions on climate change, the environment and a better understanding of the planet,” Delaney said. “So, going from that Earth science mission and coming over to the space mission with this team is just an incredible experience.”

Another Florida native joining this group of 10 is Miami-born astronaut candidate Andre Douglas. He holds a doctorate in systems engineering from George Washington University as well as several other degrees.

Douglas also served in the U.S. Coast Guard as a naval architect, salvage engineer, officer and damage control assistant. His first tour was on the Coast Guard Cutter Vigilant in Cape Canaveral, “where he led crewmembers through alien migrant interdictions, humanitarian relief efforts, and drug enforcement operations,” according to his NASA bio.

He also worked in the Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab (APL) where he helped support the fault management team during the recently launched Double Asteroid Redirection Test (DART) mission.

When asked by Wiseman, Douglas said being a NASA astronaut means embodying several different ideals.

“They’re explorers that are ready to unlock the secrets of our universe for the betterment of humankind,” Douglas said. “But most importantly, they are team players that collaborate with contractors, people, organizations and international partners to further the benefit of space exploration.” 

The following astronaut candidates will report for duty starting in January 2022 for two years of training:

• Nichole Ayers
• Marcos Berríos
• Christian Birch
• Deniz Burnham
• Luke Delaney
• Andre Douglas
• Jack Hathaway
• Anil Menon
• Christopher Williams 
• Jessica Wittner

The training of these astronaut candidates will break down into five major categories, according to NASA:

• Operating and maintaining the International Space Station’s systems
• Training for spacewalks
• Developing complex robotics skills 
• Safely operating a T038 training jet
• Russian language skills

Since the Mercury Seven were chosen in 1959, NASA has only selected 360 astronauts. With the launch of Crew-3 to the International Space Station in November, from all the space-faring nations, only 601 people have been in space.