The United States Astronaut Badge is a

badge A badge is a device or accessory, often containing the insignia of an organization, which is presented or displayed to indicate some feat of service, a special accomplishment, a symbol of authority granted by taking an oath (e.g., police and ...

of the United States, awarded to

military A military, also known collectively as armed forces, is a heavily armed, highly organized force primarily intended for warfare. It is typically authorized and maintained by a sovereign state, with its members identifiable by their distinct ...

and civilian personnel who have completed training and performed a successful

spaceflight Spaceflight (or space flight) is an application of astronautics to fly spacecraft into or through outer space, either with or without humans on board. Most spaceflight is uncrewed and conducted mainly with spacecraft such as satellites in ...

. A variation of the astronaut badge is also issued to civilians who are employed with the

National Aeronautics and Space Administration The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA ) is an independent agency of the US federal government responsible for the civil space program, aeronautics research, and space research. NASA was established in 1958, succeeding ...

as specialists on spaceflight missions. It is the least-awarded qualification badge of the United States military.

Eligibility

To earn an astronaut badge, a U.S. Air Force or

U.S. Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage o ...

and Marine Corps officer must complete all required training and participate in a space flight more than above the Earth. The

U.S. Army The United States Army (USA) is the land service branch of the United States Armed Forces. It is one of the eight U.S. uniformed services, and is designated as the Army of the United States in the U.S. Constitution.Article II, section 2, cl ...

has awarded the badge to officers that have orbited the Earth. In the 1960s, the

United States Department of Defense The United States Department of Defense (DoD, USDOD or DOD) is an executive branch department of the federal government charged with coordinating and supervising all agencies and functions of the government directly related to national sec ...

awarded astronaut badges to military and civilian pilots who flew aircraft higher than . Seven USAF and NASA pilots qualified for the astronaut badge by flying the

suborbital A sub-orbital spaceflight is a spaceflight in which the spacecraft reaches outer space, but its trajectory intersects the atmosphere or surface of the gravitating body from which it was launched, so that it will not complete one orbital ...

X-15 rocket spaceplane. American test pilots Michael Melvill and Brian Binnie were each awarded a commercial astronaut badge by the

Federal Aviation Administration The Federal Aviation Administration (FAA) is the largest transportation agency of the U.S. government and regulates all aspects of civil aviation in the country as well as over surrounding international waters. Its powers include air traffic ...

(FAA) when they flew sub-orbital missions aboard the

Scaled Composites Scaled Composites (often called simply Scaled) is an American aerospace company founded by Burt Rutan and currently owned by Northrop Grumman. It is located at the Mojave Air and Space Port in Mojave, California, United States. Founded to deve ...

SpaceShipOne SpaceShipOne is an experimental air-launched rocket-powered aircraft with sub-orbital spaceflight capability at speeds of up to 3,000 ft/s (900 m/s, 3240 km/h), using a hybrid rocket motor. The design features a unique " feathering ...

rocket spaceplane. All others who have been awarded the astronaut badge earned it travelling to space in non-winged rockets, the X-15, or the

Space Shuttle The Space Shuttle is a retired, partially reusable low Earth orbital spacecraft system operated from 1981 to 2011 by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) as part of the Space Shuttle program. Its official program n ...

. Three of the crew members aboard the Ax-1 flight aboard the Crew Dragon Capsule were awarded their civilian astronaut wings by their Mission commander upon becoming the first private citizens to travel to the International Space Station on April 9, 2022.

Military badges

Each of the military services issues its own version of the astronaut badge, which consists of a standard aviation badge with an astronaut device (shooting star through a halo) centered on the badge's shield, or escutcheon. The United States Air Force and United States Army astronaut badges are issued in three degrees: Basic, senior, and command (Air Force)/master (Army). The senior astronaut badge is denoted by a star centered above the decoration, while the command/master level is indicated by a star and wreath.

U.S. Air Force astronauts

The U.S. Air Force Astronaut Badge consists of a standard USAF aeronautical badge upon which is centered the Astronaut Device. The Air Force does not consider Astronaut to be a separate rating from its six established rating badges, but as a "qualifier" to them, and may only be awarded by the Air Force Chief of Staff after written application upon completion of an operational space mission. The rating of

Observer An observer is one who engages in observation or in watching an experiment. Observer may also refer to: Computer science and information theory * In information theory, any system which receives information from an object * State observer in co ...

is used for USAF Mission Specialists who have completed training but not a mission and are not otherwise aeronautically rated as a USAF pilot, RPA pilot, combat systems officer, air battle manager, or flight surgeon. In 2007, the U.S. Air Force announced the opening of astronaut mission specialists positions to enlisted personnel who met certain eligibility requirements. These requirements include: * Be on active duty in the U.S. Air Force * Be a United States citizen * Have a minimum of a bachelor's degree in either engineering, mathematics, biological science, or physical science, with 3 years experience * Have a current Class II Flight Physical * Be between 62 and 75 inches tall No enlisted astronaut badges are yet known to have been issued.

U.S. Army astronauts

The gold astronaut device is issued by the

to Army aviators, flight surgeons, and aircrew members that qualify as astronauts. The astronaut device is a gold shooting star and elliptical orbit which is affixed over the shield of previously awarded Army aviation badges. Army astronauts that have yet to fly a mission and have not previously been awarded any aviation badge are awarded the army aviation badge. Once they have flown a mission, they are awarded the Astronaut Device which is affixed to the shield of their army aviation badge. The army astronaut device was approved on May 17, 1983. The black version of the device and its sew-on equivalent may be worn on the Army Combat Uniform (ACU); the silver wings with gold device version is authorized for wear on

Army Service Uniform The Army Service Uniform (ASU) is a military uniform worn by United States Army personnel in situations where formal dress is called for. It can be worn at most public and official functions. Over history, a number of different non-combat servi ...

s. It is believed to be the rarest badge issued by the U.S. Army.Army Astronaut Device and Badges
,

The Institute of Heraldry The Institute of Heraldry, officially The Institute of Heraldry, Department of the Army, is an activity of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army solely responsible for furnishing heraldic services to President of the United ...

Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army The Office of the Administrative Assistant to the Secretary of the Army (OAA) has a primary mission, as specified in Title 10 of the United States Code and reiterated in General Orders and Regulations, to provide direct support to the Secretary o ...

. Retrieved March 18, 2009.

U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Coast Guard astronauts

The naval astronaut insignias are issued in a single degree to

naval aviators A navy, naval force, or maritime force is the branch of a nation's armed forces principally designated for naval and amphibious warfare; namely, lake-borne, riverine, littoral, or ocean-borne combat operations and related functions. It include ...

and flight officers from the

United States Navy The United States Navy (USN) is the maritime service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the eight uniformed services of the United States. It is the largest and most powerful navy in the world, with the estimated tonnage ...

United States Marine Corps The United States Marine Corps (USMC), also referred to as the United States Marines, is the maritime land force service branch of the United States Armed Forces responsible for conducting expeditionary and amphibious operations through c ...

, and

United States Coast Guard The United States Coast Guard (USCG) is the maritime security, search and rescue, and law enforcement service branch of the United States Armed Forces and one of the country's eight uniformed services. The service is a maritime, military, m ...

, with officers of all three branches receiving their designations as aviators or flight officers through the naval aviation flight training program. All three branches also wear the same insignia which consists of naval aviator insignia or naval flight officer insignia with a centered gold astronaut device. However, the Coast Guard only issues the naval aviator version of the astronaut insignia to its astronauts.

NASA astronaut pins

In addition to the astronaut badge, which is worn on a military uniform, an astronaut pin is also issued to all NASA astronauts, signifying their eligibility to take part in missions to space. These include flights to the International Space Station, and Artemis missions to the moon. It is a lapel pin worn on civilian clothing. The pin is issued in two grades, silver and gold, with the silver pin awarded to candidates who have successfully completed astronaut training and the gold pin to astronauts who have flown in space. Astronaut candidates are given the silver pin but are required to purchase the gold pin at a cost of approximately $400. Astronauts aboard the Mercury 7 were the first to receive the pins. A unique astronaut pin was made for NASA astronaut Deke Slayton in 1967. It was gold in color, like the ones given to astronauts who had flown, and it had a small diamond embedded in the star. It was made at the request of the crew of the first

crewed mission Human spaceflight (also referred to as manned spaceflight or crewed spaceflight) is spaceflight with a crew or passengers aboard a spacecraft, often with the spacecraft being operated directly by the onboard human crew. Spacecraft can also be ...

of the Apollo program as a tribute to Slayton's work at NASA. The idea was that everyone in the Astronaut Office had thought Slayton would never get to fly in space (due to his paroxysmal atrial fibrillation; he would later fly on board the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project as docking module pilot), however as they knew it was primarily because of him that they managed to do so, he should wear a gold pin rather than a silver one as a token of appreciation. As they knew Slayton would refuse to wear exactly the same gold pin as veteran astronauts, the diamond was added. The pin was supposed to have been flown on board the Apollo 1

spacecraft A spacecraft is a vehicle or machine designed to fly in outer space. A type of artificial satellite, spacecraft are used for a variety of purposes, including communications, Earth observation, meteorology, navigation, space colonization, ...

, then given to Slayton after the mission was over. However, the Apollo 1 crew died in a fire during a training exercise on January 27, 1967. The pin was given to Slayton by the three widows of the dead crew as a token of condolence. This diamond-studded gold pin was later flown to the Moon on board

Apollo 11 Apollo 11 (July 16–24, 1969) was the American spaceflight that first landed humans on the Moon. Commander Neil Armstrong and lunar module pilot Buzz Aldrin landed the Apollo Lunar Module ''Eagle'' on July 20, 1969, at 20:17 UTC, ...

in July 1969. One silver astronaut pin currently rests on the surface of the Moon, the one that belonged to Clifton Williams, left there by astronaut Alan Bean during

Apollo 12 Apollo 12 (November 14–24, 1969) was the sixth crewed flight in the United States Apollo program and the second to land on the Moon. It was launched on November 14, 1969, by NASA from the Kennedy Space Center, Florida. Commander Charles ...

in 1969. Williams was originally scheduled to fly to the Moon as Lunar Module Pilot on Apollo 12 but was killed in a plane crash before he was officially assigned to the flight. Bean was his replacement.

NASA and FAA civilian badges

NASA has a civilian astronaut badge, which is issued to civilian personnel who participate in U.S. space missions. The U.S.

also grants commercial astronaut wings to commercial pilots who have performed a successful spaceflight. Two people earned Commercial Wings in 2004, and two other crews have been granted wings since 2018. The FAA Commercial Astronaut Wings design changed before the 2018 flights.

NASA Space Shuttle payload specialist badges

A unique badge was created for individuals serving as payload specialists on NASA Space Shuttle missions. Payload specialists were selected by a variety of organizations and included: * individuals selected by the research community, a company or consortium flying a commercial payload aboard the spacecraft * non-NASA astronauts selected by partner nations * U.S. legislative branch representatives

The payload specialist badge of

Ukrainian Ukrainian may refer to: * Something of, from, or related to Ukraine * Something relating to Ukrainians, an East Slavic people from Eastern Europe * Something relating to demographics of Ukraine in terms of demography and population of Ukraine * So ...

astronaut Leonid Kadenyuk

References

{{US Army badges United States military badges Space program of the United States