FAQ

The "Astronaut for a Day – Austria" initiative is sponsored by the Federal Ministry of Innovation, Mobility and Infrastructure (BMIMI) and the Austrian Research Promotion Agency (FFG) and organized together with the Luxembourg Space Agency (LSA) and the Estonian Space Office (EIS). It is open to all young people aged 15 or more in secondary education who have an interest in space and are enrolled in a school in Austria.

The “Astronaut for a Day” initiative is an exceptional project, firstly inspired by the Portuguese Space Agency and then organized in Luxembourg in 2023 by the Luxembourg Space Agency.

For the first time in 2025, the initiative is open for Austrian students as well!

Important note: this initiative is not limited to students on science and technology courses. Space is for everyone!

As a space ambassador, your mission doesn’t end with your flight – it continues for one year afterward (until October 2026). During this time, you’ll share your unique experience with others and help spark interest in space, science and technology. You might visit schools, speak at public events, post on social media or even organize your own outreach activities. Whether you're inspiring the next generation of space enthusiasts or engaging with curious minds in your community, your role is to help make space more accessible and exciting for EVERYONE!

The parabolic flight will take place on 15 October 2025.

On the days before, there will be team-building activities arranged by the organisers for the 13 successful Austrian applicants, the finalists from Luxembourg and the finalists from Estonia.

All secondary school students (classical, general or technical) enrolled in a public or private educational institution in Austria, or who can prove that they are in secondary education at home. To apply, you must be at least 15 years old on the date of the flight and must be in secondary education in the academic years 2024-25 and 2025-26.

Here are some examples which may help:

-) I’m 19 one month before the flight and in my penultimate year of secondary education during the current academic year 2024-25. Can I apply?

Yes, you can. You meet all the criteria.

-) I’m going to be 15 the day after the parabolic flight. Can I apply?

Sorry, but no. Everyone selected to go on the parabolic flight must be at least 15 years old on the day of the flight. But if your birthday is on the same day as the flight, you can apply.

One place on the flight is open to candidates with disability. You must not have any medical conditions which would be contraindicating to parabolic flight. If you are interested, you are welcome to contact us so that we can arrange a preliminary interview between your doctor and our parabolic flight medical commission, to assess the feasibility of your participation.

In case of a favorable medical opinion, applicants will follow an adapted selection process.

Yes. It is free to apply and to participate in the various stages of this process.

No. The trip to Luxembourg including accommodation will be organized by the organisers.

Yes, but at their own expense. Any travel and accommodation costs for parental/legal guardians will not be covered by the organizers.

The selection process for "Astronaut for a Day – Austria" is inspired of the selection processes for astronauts, run by space agencies worldwide. It will consist of 5 separate stages as follows:

● Stage 1: Application and video

● Stage 2: Logic and comprehension tests

● Stage 3: Physical fitness

● Stage 4: Interview

● Stage 5: Medical check-up

After assessment of the applications submitted at Stage 1, 100 candidates will be selected for the reasoning and comprehension tests: this is the second stage of the competition, which takes the form of an online test. This means you can take the test at home or at school. No need to travel.

50 applicants will proceed to the physical fitness stage, with physical and motor function tests in person.

Next comes the stage which tests your communication skills at interview. Up to 35 applicants will be short-listed for this stage. Interviewing will take place online, via a platform to be notified later, and you will be assessed by a panel.

The 13 applicants who achieve the best assessments will be selected for the parabolic flight, subject to a favorable medical check-up. The organisers will announce the successful applicants.

Application via the website www.astronautforaday.at is mandatory. You will find the application form there. At a later stage, you will be sent a link to record a video answering predefined questions.

PLEASE NOTE: Both stages are necessary to validate your participation in "Astronaut for a Day – Austria". If you submit a completed application form but do not record the video, your application will be discarded as incomplete.

The video is to tell us why you want to be an "Astronaut for a Day". You will have 60 seconds to answer the questions asked, explain why we should pick you and persuade us to let you through to the next stage. The video has to be recorded in English.

Tip: be clear, precise and, above all: wow us!

Don't panic! You will probably not receive the video recording link immediately after submitting your entry form. Our team will first screen applicants against the eligibility criteria: age and being in education. Video links will be sent within 24 hours of the end of this stage except during weekends.

On receiving your link to record a video, you have seven days to record and submit it to validate your entry for the first stage of the competition.

N.B: if no video is received by the set deadline, your entry will be treated as void and we cannot consider it further.

If you meet the criteria and receive no link to record a video 48 hours after submitting your application and receiving an acknowledgement for it, please contact us via the contact form.

Yes, there are. If you go through to the reasoning test stage, each of your legal representatives must sign a consent form and provide a digital copy of their respective identity documents so that you can follow the process. The organisers will send the form to the contact e-mail you gave in your application. If you have a single legal representative, you only have to return a single signed consent. If you have two legal representatives (e.g. both parents), each must sign a consent form and provide a copy of an ID.

Only applicants who proceed to the second stage have to send the consent form. The consent must be sent no later than two days before the date of this stage.

A school certificate may also be requested during the selection process.

"Astronaut for a Day - Austria" is done in cooperation with Luxembourg and Estonia. Since the successful applicants will have to speak English during the trip to Luxembourg and the parabolic flight, the entire application process is done in English.

If this happens, the organisers will allocate their place(s) to one or more other applicants, in order of the best score attained at Stage 4, from 14th to 18th place. For this purpose, a list of 5 reserve astronauts will be published when the successful applicants for this edition are known.

It's a shame and we’re really sorry.

The selection process is based on a scoring system linking the criteria of eligibility, reasons for applying, interest in space, performance in the reasoning and comprehension tests, performance in the physical tests and communication skills.

Applicants are assessed at each stage in a spirit of respect, inclusion and impartiality towards aspiring astronauts for a day.

By applying for "Astronaut for a Day", you accept the risk that your application may not be successful.