Astronaut Rosemary Coogan graduates from space training

After receiving the certification at ESA’s European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany, she is now eligible for spaceflight

Rosemary Coogan has graduated from astronaut training with the European Space Agency (ESA/PA)

Rosemary Coogan has gained her astronaut wings, graduating from space training as a new European Space Agency (Esa) astronaut.

After completing one year of rigorous basic astronaut training, Ms Coogan, along with Sophie Adenot, Pablo Alvarez Fernandez, Raphael Liegeois, Marco Sieber and Australian Space Agency astronaut candidate Katherine Bennell-Pegg received astronaut certification.

After receiving the certification at ESA’s European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany, the astronauts have become eligible for spaceflight.

An astrophysicist with two master’s degrees from Durham University and an astronomy doctorate from Sussex, Ms Coogan, who was born in Northern Ireland, was selected to join the ESA’s astronaut training programme in 2022, after beating more than 22,500 applicants.

Basic astronaut training involved honing skills in spacecraft systems, spacewalking, flight engineering, robotics and life support systems, as well as survival and medical training.

They will now move on to the phases of pre-assignment and mission-specific training, paving the way for future missions to the ISS and beyond.