The application deadline to become one of Canada’s next astronauts is nearing. Ross Lockwood has less than 60 days to prepare his – the final steps to achieving a life-long dream of going to space.
The Edmonton man applied once before back in 2008 but admittedly did not have the same resume he has now.
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His experiences aren’t your average Curriculum Vitae bullet points.
Lockwood was one of six crew members that participated in a 120-day Mars simulation mission in Hawaii.
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“It was a psychology study, so basically trying to understand how people in extreme isolation interact with each other,” Lockwood explained.
The project was to help understand what space agencies “need to watch out for when choosing astronauts to go on long duration missions.”
Lockwood hopes to get a shining reference from that experience.
“I am still mentally strong.
“I am good friends with the people that were on the mission with us. I think they did a really good job in choosing us as a crew. We worked really well together and we had a lot of fun.”
Since Hawaii, Lockwood has managed to get a few more key experiences under his belt, such as aerobatic flights and centrifuge testing that simulate the g-force of a rocket launch. All of his experiences are meant to simulate the intense situations an astronaut would likely face.
“I just came home from Connecticut where I did a spacecraft egress course where they teach you how to escape from an aircraft body or a simulated space craft that has landed in water and is quickly filling up.”
Before the application deadline, he hopes to get a pilot’s licence and learn to speak Russian, all in an effort to make himself a more marketable candidate.
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Lockwood shared his advice for science enthusiasts with lofty aspirations.
“The advice that has been useful to me has been that you should not disqualify yourself. If there’s an opportunity – or something you want to do but you don’t think you meet the minimum requirements – fill out the application anyway, and send it in,” Lockwood said.
He knows that competition to work for the Canadian Space Agency will be fierce.
“If I don’t end up being selected during this candidacy round… I am still going to be able to share my experiences and I am going to look for more opportunities,” Lockwood said.
“The Canadian Space Agency isn’t the only option for astronauts these days. We’re seeing the rise of commercial space flight and private sector rockets taking off, so I might be a commercial astronaut.”
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