by She beat a field of more than 22,000 candidates, has a PhD in astrophysics and a background as a Royal Navy reservist. However, newly qualified British astronaut Rosemary Coogan believes space travel should not be limited to elites in the future.
Coogan, 33, from Belfast, the second British recruit to the European Space Agency (ESA), believes we are entering a revolutionary phase in space exploration that will lead not only to the return of humans to the moon, but also trips to Mars and beyond becomes .
“I definitely don’t think space travel or space in general should be for the elite,” she said. “I’m sure there are a lot of people out there who would love to do that [visit] another planet. I think the people who will end up doing these missions will be trained to make sure the mission is successful and we treat other planets with respect, but that doesn’t mean they will be the elite few.”
Coogan, who completed his training in April, will be deployed on a six-month mission to the International Space Station by 2030, when the ISS is scheduled to be decommissioned. In addition, a new era of space ambition is beginning: NASA’s Artemis program aims for a manned landing on the Moon as early as 2026 in preparation for a planned first human visit to Mars. Three seats have been allocated to European astronauts for future Artemis missions, and Coogan says she is ready for use.
“I would love to go to the moon… I would be incredibly excited to visit other planets,” she said. “The goal of every astronaut is to be involved in or contribute to exploration as much as possible.”
But she doesn’t share the vision of Elon Musk, whose SpaceX rockets regularly carry astronauts to the ISS and who recently claimed that people could be living in a self-sustaining city on Mars within 20 years.
“It’s a personal opinion, but I don’t imagine a future where we have permanent colonies,” she said. “I don’t think we need to leave the Earth behind and go somewhere else permanently.”
Instead, she said, visiting other plants will deepen our understanding of Earth’s place in the vast universe, how life arose here, and help predict future changes in our climate to “plan for the things that are unfortunately expected to change.” is too late.” “.
“We have a fantastic, amazing and beautiful planet here,” she said. “What we learn from the Moon and Mars we can bring back to this planet. We have to take care of planet Earth, and I think going to other planets will actually help us do that, but I kind of see it from that perspective.”
Coogan was selected as an Esa candidate in 2022 from a pool of more than 22,500 applicants and completed a year-long training at the European Astronaut Center in Cologne. She has a PhD in astrophysics, studies galaxy evolution with the James Webb Space Telescope and previously spent years in the Sea Cadets and the Royal Navy Reserve. Her selection follows that of Maj Tim Peake, Britain’s first ESA astronaut, and Helen Sharman, who visited the Soviet Mir space station in 1991.
Diversity is improving in a field once reserved for male former fighter pilots. Esa’s cohort of seven astronauts in 2009 included just one woman, compared to two of five professional astronauts in 2022 and a reserve cohort that includes British Paralympic sprinter and surgeon John McFall. Coogan said: “The pursuit of diversity and complete equality is always something we must continue to pursue.”
The training includes a fast-paced academic curriculum focusing on mathematics, biology, engineering, photography and public communications. But the focus is also on psychological preparation. Coogan and her classmates spent days isolated in a cave and were sent to the Spanish Pyrenees for high-altitude winter survival training.
“It was absolutely incredible scenery, snow everywhere,” she said. “There was a real emphasis on understanding what is around you, how to make sure you survive there safely, but also how to care for each other.”
At some point, Coogan’s foot plunged through the snow into an icy river below. “I had an extremely wet and cold foot but didn’t think much of it,” she said. But when she woke up the next morning, she found that her boot was frozen and would no longer be able to be put on. “It was maybe a bit of a low point,” Coogan said. “But one of my colleagues came over and brought me a cup of tea. It was a really nice moment with the team supporting each other.”
As its final years draw to a close, the ISS was beset by a number of problems, including concerns about a five-year air leak that proved difficult to locate, unexpected water splashes from an astronaut’s spacesuit and the planned eight-year mission of two U.S. astronauts. The one-day visit in June turned into an eight-month stranding in space due to technical problems with the Boeing Starliner. But Coogan remains unfazed and says dealing with “non-nominal” events and uncertainties is part of the job description.
“[Esa] Choose people who remain particularly calm under pressure and do not panic in extraordinary situations,” she said. “It is a great opportunity to go to the station and it is not up to us to determine the exact time or duration. We accept the situation as it comes.”
