Centaurus grad chosen to be NASA astronaut candidate
When asked what they want to be when they grow up, most kids change their answer week to week.
But one Louisville native always knew.
“It’s been a dream of mine since I was a little boy, and to get the chance to live that dream is amazing,” said Jack D. Fischer, 35.
Fischer, a major and test pilot in the Air Force, is one of nine people selected for NASA’s 2009 astronaut candidate class. The group will train at the Johnson Space Center in Houston to be astronauts.
“I was just elated,” Fischer said of receiving the call from NASA late last month. “I went running through the house trying to find my wife and two little girls.”
Fischer grew up in Louisville and graduated in the top five of his class from Centaurus High School in 1992. He went on to the Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs and the Massachusetts Institute of Technology, where he received degrees in astrodynamics.
Fischer, who now lives in Virginia, said his application process began in January 2008 and, after numerous interviews, psychiatric and medical evaluations and narrowing of the applicant pool, he finally received the call he’d been waiting for his whole life.
“It’s really hard to put into words because it’s almost hard to believe it’s real at this point,” Fischer said. “After all this time and all of the effort that I’ve put into obtaining this goal, to finally reach it is hard to describe.”
Duane Ross, a candidate selection board member for NASA, said Fischer and the other eight people chosen bested more than 3,500 other applicants.
Ross said selecting new astronaut candidates is an arduous task, and the nine chosen this year are the smallest number ever selected. He said the candidates will undergo a “rigorous training program” that will prepare them to be crew members on the space station in the near future.
Joe Tanner, a senior instructor in the aerospace engineering program at the University of Colorado, was a NASA astronaut for 16 years. He said NASA’s selection process is extensive, and getting to this point should make the candidates proud.
“There are a lot of elements there,” Tanner said. “Everyone who has ever been selected has an appreciation for the selection process. ... Everyone in the later stages is more than qualified.”
Fischer’s training program will begin in late August and last about 22 months. He said the program will include team-building, geology, medical and flight training.
While being an astronaut has been Fischer’s dream since he was little, he said there were a lot of times when he doubted himself and thought about giving up — including when his father died.
“Thankfully, I had really strong support all the way,” Fischer said. “It’s really just a long line of family and friends and mentors who have encouraged me along the way and helped me get to this point. ... Hopefully I won’t let them down.”
Carol Forbes has been teaching at Centaurus for 27 years and remembers when Fischer was on the Student Senate and she was the advisor. She said she isn’t surprised that Fischer has reached his goal.
“I think the biggest thing that I remember from Jack is his deep sense of responsibility and that when he took on a responsibility ... he would put out every effort to make sure it was completed,” Forbes said.
Boulder Daily Camera
Brandon Schatsiek, Camera Staff Writer
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