Astronaut for a Day touches down in the Azores for the first time

The 2025 edition of the Astronaut for a Day initiative, promoted by the Portuguese Space Agency, will take place from 18 to 21 September on the island of Santa Maria, in the Azores. The local airport will serve as the stage for the zero-gravity flight that will allow 30 Portuguese students to experience the unique sensation of floating like astronauts.

The initiative, which has already enabled 91 young people to defy gravity, welcomes a new partner this year through the involvement of the Regional Government of the Azores, which is hosting and supporting the final stage of the programme.

Over the three days that comprise the final stage of the flight, the thirty finalists will participate in group dynamics activities and training sessions, held on the island of Santa Maria and at the headquarters of the Portuguese Space Agency in Vila do Porto. These sessions aim to broaden knowledge about the national space sector and promote teamwork.

For the President of the Portuguese Space Agency, Ricardo Conde, “bringing Astronaut for a Day to Santa Maria is more than a logistical choice — it is a commitment to territorial cohesion and the active involvement of the Autonomous Regions in affirming Portugal as a space nation”. “The cooperation with the Regional Government of the Azores highlights how it is possible, from an island, to inspire young people from all over the country to look at space as a horizon of possibilities,” he emphasises.

As for the President of the Regional Government of the Azores, José Manuel Bolieiro, “by hosting the Astronaut for a Day initiative, organised by the Portuguese Space Agency, the Azores are renewing their ambition to increasingly assert themselves as an important strategic point in promoting space among our young people, who are the future of the regional, national and European space ecosystems”.

The 2025 edition of Astronaut for a Day received more than 600 applications from all regions of the country, marking a first-time female majority. After a rigorous selection process, which included spatial perception and memory tests, physical fitness assessments, and interviews, 30 finalists were chosen, comprising students from the Azores and Madeira.

In addition to the Regional Government of the Azores, Astronaut for a Day has the support of the Portuguese Air Force, Ciência Viva, the Faculty of Psychology and Education Science of the University of Porto, and the Faculty of Human Kinetics of the University of Lisbon.