Thread by @thesheetztweetz

NASA announces the 2021 class of 10 astronaut candidates:

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

Nichole Ayers, 32, is a U.S. Air Force major from Colorado, with more than 200 combat hours – and one of the few women currently flying the F-22 fighter jet.

Marcos Berríos, 37, is a U.S. Air Force major from Puerto Rico, and is a helicopter test pilot who holds degrees in mechanical engineering from MIT and Stanford.

Christina Birch, 35, is from Arizona and has a doctorate in biological engineering from MIT, and has won multiple national titles cycling for the U.S. National Team.

Deniz Burnham, 36, is a U.S. Navy lieutenant from Alaska who holds degrees from UC San Diego and USC, who works in the energy industry managing drilling projects.

Luke Delaney, 42, is a retired U.S Marine Corps major from Florida, with degrees in mechanical and aerospace engineering from University of North Florida and the Naval Postgraduate School. A test pilot, he worked for NASA’s Langley center supporting airborne science missions.

Andre Douglas, 35, is from Virginia and served in the U.S. Coast Guard, and most recently worked at Johns Hopkins University Applied Physics Lab on NASA missions.

Jack Hathaway, 39, is a U.S. Navy commander from Connecticut who holds degrees in physics and history form the U.S. Naval Academy and flew with Navy Strike Fighter Squadrons 14 and 136, with more than 2,500 flight hours in 30 aircraft types.

Anil Menon, 45, is a U.S. Air Force lieutenant colonel from Minnesota, who was the first SpaceX flight surgeon and has experience as an emergency medicine physician for crisis like the 2010 Haiti earthquake, 2011 Ren Air Show accident, and 2015 Nepal earthquake.

Christopher Williams, 38, is from Maryland and holds degrees in physics from Stanford and MIT. As a medical physicist, he’s helped research image guidance techniques for cancer treatments.

Jessica Wittner, 38, is a U.S. Navy commander from California with degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Arizona and  the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School. She flew F/A-18 jets with Strike Fighter Squadrons 34 and 151, as well as worked as a test pilot.