The 30 finalists for Astronaut for a Day 2025 have been selected
For the fourth consecutive time, 30 young Portuguese students will have the opportunity to float like astronauts on a parabolic flight. Coimbra and Lisbon are the districts with the highest number of selected finalists.
This September, another 30 Portuguese students will be able to say they’ve experienced zero gravity on a parabolic flight. The Portuguese Space Agency has already selected this year’s finalists for the Astronaut for a Day (Astronauta por um Dia) initiative, which qualifying rounds began in January.
This is the fourth time the Portuguese Space Agency has run the Astronaut for a Day programme, which once again showed increased geographical diversity, with finalists from nearly every part of the country. Additionally, the group of finalists is once again perfectly balanced: 15 boys and 15 girls.
“The 2025 edition of ‘Astronaut for a Day’ has once again proven to be a fantastic programme by the Agency: it’s a national competition that reaches the entire country and all social strata. It appeals equally to boys and girls and gets families and the academic community talking about space, which is inspiring for many young people. We’ve consistently achieved these goals in every edition of the initiative, which shows that young people and their communities are increasingly connected to space and its opportunities,” says Hugo André Costa, Executive Director of the Portuguese Space Agency.
This year, Coimbra and Lisbon lead with five finalists each, followed by Santarém with four. From the Autonomous Region of Madeira, which had one finalist last year, two candidates were selected this time. The Autonomous Region of the Azores will also be represented by one selected candidate.
In terms of school levels, 18 are in secondary education while 12 are in the 8th and 9th grades. “These figures align with the trend observed since the first edition. Normally, most finalists are in secondary education, as they usually already have a clearer idea about their academic and professional paths,” says Marta Gonçalves, Programme Manager for Education and Science at the Portuguese Space Agency.
The 30 finalists of “Astronaut for a Day” went through four elimination stages, during which various skills were tested. The first phase evaluated the candidates’ motivation and creativity through the submission of an application video. For the second stage, 250 candidates moved forward and were tested on spatial awareness and interpretation. From those, 100 were selected for the third stage, which assessed their physical abilities.
For the fourth and final stage, 50 candidates were chosen, and their communication skills were evaluated by a jury composed of members from the Portuguese Space Agency, Ciência Viva, and scientist and analogue astronaut Ana Pires.
The parabolic flight is scheduled for 21 September, but the 30 finalists will also take part in activities and training sessions in the days leading up to the flight.
“Astronaut for a Day” is supported by Ciência Viva, the Faculty of Psychology and Education Sciences of the University of Porto, and the Faculty of Human Kinetics of the University of Lisbon.
