We're not going to orbit around the bush: job offers to go to space are extremely rare.
And the posts at the key, just as much.
However, what may seem impossible sometimes becomes possible: this Wednesday, the European Space Agency (ESA) is launching a call for applications to recruit its future astronauts.
Be careful not to miss the mark!
Applications must be submitted by May 28 at the latest and the opportunity will not present itself any time soon.
The last time such a window of fire opened was in 2009, and out of the six elected - seven if we include the integration of Matthias Maurer in 2015 -, there was a Frenchman: Thomas Pesquet .
This is once again, the ESA is looking for four to six "professionals capable of conducting space flight missions in low earth orbit and on the moon", as described in the announcements published overnight from Tuesday to Wednesday.
The number of new recruits will "depend on the profiles that arise", underlines Zineb Elomri, specialist in talent acquisition at ESA.
The astronauts will join the European body of astronauts, which currently has seven. Among them, a woman, only one, the Italian Samantha Cristoforetti.
While these ladies were only 15.5% to apply in 2009, the new offers set the tone from the first sentences: “Applications from women are encouraged.
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"Thanks to this new selection, to have more role models, more female astronauts, surely that will generate more vocations", predicts Zineb Elomri.
During its previous campaign, the ESA aimed rather to rejuvenate the small club of astronauts.
If the maximum recommended age was then 40 years, we can now apply up to 49 years.
The goal is to be able to perform at least two space missions before the age limit of 63.
Flying does not go without a few physical criteria: a height of 1.50 m to 1.90 m, a normal body mass index (BMI) (between 18.5 and 24.9), normal hearing acuity (from 0 to 25 dB) and 10 out of 10 in each eye.
Do you wear glasses or contact lenses?
Do not despair: contrary to popular belief, this last prerequisite is also valid after correction.
Bac + 5 and resistance to stress
To have a chance of being selected, a minimum academic background is required.
It is necessary to have validated a bac + 5 in natural sciences, medicine, engineering, mathematics or computer sciences.
Or, hold a diploma in experimental test pilot or test engineer.
"A doctorate or a second master's degree is not essential, it is a plus", underlines Zineb Elomri.
It is also necessary to be able to justify “three years of relevant postgraduate professional experience, showing a gradual increase in responsibilities”.
Speaking excellent English is imperative.
Fluency in a second language is an advantage, but it may be the mother tongue.
Obviously, joining the restricted club of astronauts suggests an element of sacrifice, clearly exposed in the announcements: “You will have to show a strong motivation and be able to cope with long periods of high workload, working hours. irregularities, frequent trips and long absences from home, (far from) your family and normal social life.
Of course, you also have to be a volunteer to conduct scientific experiments.
Finally, being able to keep calm when you are under pressure.
This stress resistance capacity is assessed during situation tests.
Before this decisive step, a first selection is made on the basis of files.
In 2009, out of around 8,000 applications corresponding to the criteria, a thousand were selected.
Then come the exams and interviews, until a final meeting with the Director General of ESA.
Zineb Elomri believes that the growing interest in the space should generate an influx of applications.
For her, you have to be daring: “The experience of selection itself is enriching, on a personal level.
By dint of doing these interviews, the candidates get to know themselves better, to present themselves better, to develop their self-confidence.
It's a kind of training that allows them to land another job they were looking for.
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A corps of 20 reservists
The disappointed, because there will be, may not have lost everything.
Because ESA is innovating by creating a reserve corps that can accommodate up to twenty astronauts.
These will not be recruited by the agency but will be mobilized within the framework of missions, if the space activity requires reinforcements.
They participate in training and exams one week per year.
The rest of the time, they work for their employers.
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Among these reservists, one or two people with disabilities will participate in a feasibility study.
“We had a long discussion internally to see how to make this project happen.
The important thing was to make sure that these people could fully exercise the profession of astronaut and not just part of it.
You have to keep the motor skills of your hands, be able to stand up and do the necessary maneuvers in the station.
It was decided to limit this pilot phase to a few cases of disability in order to guarantee the feasibility of the project as much as possible.
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The target is people of small stature (less than 1.30 m), or with legs of different sizes, or with a deficiency in the feet or legs, or in only one of these limbs.
The objective with these "parastronauts": to see how we can best adapt space vehicles and technology to their disability.
In the two separate offers disseminated, for people with or without disabilities, ESA provides applicants with a 32-page guide (in English).
Go!
