It’s official: the next Hungarian astronaut has been selected

In line with the final decision of an expert committee, Tibor Kapu has been selected as the Hungarian astronaut to be sent to space and his backup will be Gyula Cserényi, the foreign minister said on Monday.

The ministry cited Péter Szijjártó as saying before setting off for a European Union foreign ministers’ meeting in Brusssels that Kapu and Cserényi will undergo the last phase of training.

240 people applied for the mission, from which, through a very complex process, experts finally selected four candidates who underwent extensive training ranging from space dynamics to light aircraft pilot training, various physical tests and scientific work.

Kapu is a 32-year-old mechanical engineer with a background in battery development in the automotive industry, and Cserényi is a 35-year-old electrical engineer, he added.

The two men were among four candidates in the Hungarian to Orbit (HUNOR) programme.

Hungary will send an astronaut to the International Space Station, with the cooperation of US-based Axiom Space, for a 30-day research mission at the end of 2024 or early in 2025. They will have to perform very serious tasks, both in terms of physical and mental endurance, as the next Hungarian astronaut will have to endure, for example, a 48-hour journey in a capsule, almost in one place, until they reach the International Space Station. They will both undergo the same training, so if for some reason a replacement is needed, they will not lose any of the work they have done so far.

The other two candidates will support the mission as senior staff in the ground support unit.

As we wrote in March, Hungary has signed a framework agreement with the European Space Agency (ESA) on cooperation in its national research astronaut programme, details HERE.

As we wrote earlier, first Hungarian mass-produced satellite could be in orbit in a few years, details HERE.