Astronauts are not like pilots, who fly into sky. They need some special trainings. They will fly into space. First they go to the Johnson space center in Houston Texas. They are tested there. Space doctors want to know how strong and smart they are.
First of all, their hearts are tested. The people walk or run. Next, the space doctors see how fast their hearts are beating.
Then it is another important test. In this test the person mustcurlhis body up in a ball. And when he is in that position, he will be put into a round cloth bag. The doctors don't tell him how long he will have to stay in the bag. If a spaceship broke down in space, the astronauts would get into bags like these. Then they would have to wait, curled up in darkness, until they are saved. You can know that an astronaut must not be afraid of tight spaces or darkness.
After these tests, scientists only choose the best people to start astronaut training in a training center. They will learn many other things in training. They will learn how to jump out of moving airplane, to blow up a lifeboat and get into it while they are in the ocean.
They also have to learn how to get lifted out of the ocean by a helicopter.
When they finish training, the astronauts go on to work. They stay in good situation by running and doing exercise. They read about the special jobs. In that way they will be able to learn new facts about space travel.
Finally, the astronaut is told to go to work on a flight into space. The members begin to know each other first. Then they can learn which jobs each will do.
