When you think of an astronaut, who do you picture? A white man? That’s because the majority of astronauts fit that exact description. The history of humans in space has been a short one. The first man was sent to outer space only 62 years ago in 1961 (NASA 2011). Since then, hundreds of people have been to space. The vast majority, about 90%, of those people have been white men (Treat, Bennett, & Turner 2020). The structures of the white patriarchy that have afflicted Earth for hundreds of years have continued into space. Even though a lot of change has happened since that first manned mission in 1961(Logsdon 2023), space programs around the world still have a lot of work to do in order to make space exploration more diverse and available to all who wish to contribute to this field of study.

In order to understand these diversity issues, it is important to understand how the astronaut recruitment process works. To start, candidates must have a Bachelor’s degree in one of a few certain scientific fields such as engineering or physics. They must also meet several physical standards such as height and blood pressure. Piloting candidates must have an education and experience in the field. Those who meet these requirements are then vigorously tested and interviewed. If they are accepted to their desired program, they will then go through a lengthy orientation and training process (Harris & Chandler, 2008).

Astronauts' diversity is a complicated issue that does not have a simple solution. In order for us to see change a lot must change in our system, for starters everyone must be given equal opportunity to demonstrate their knowledge. For far too long, this has been the issue in this field, it has stopped many people from becoming astronauts. This may have included people that could have been much more qualified to take the position and made brilliant discoveries. The problem lies with the recruitment process and the bias that stops people of color or a different sex from getting the job. If the recruitment process changes in a way that there is no bias, we will start to see much more diversity in the field. While implicit biases will always exist, there are still steps that can be taken. 

This can be accomplished many ways, one of which is by creating more diversity in the recruiters themselves, if there is a wide range of diversity on the recruitment team then it is less likely for there to be bias when picking capable individuals. Even if there were to be bias, it would likely be different people based on the implicit biases of the diverse recruitment board. It is almost impossible to stop all bias from happening with the process, but if the bias of the different recruiters oppose one another then the recruiters will have to justify their reasoning with the person's qualifications. 

The second method in order to create diversity in astronauts is by having blind scouting, meaning that the scouts are provided a list of a person’s qualifications and then determine who is the most qualified to go in for a proper interview. Both these methods will help to even the playing field. Some may argue that an easy answer to this problem is to not hire biased people, but based on the history in the field, this is clearly easier said than done.

When looking purely off of qualifications, there will be no chance for there to be any bias. We will also see more diversity as time goes on because as our society begins to drift away from old racist and sexist beliefs people start to realize that we all deserve equal opportunity. You can see a lot of change already by just looking at NASA’s website which states that “Diversity drives innovation,” (NASA 2022). This is a step in the right direction and it shows the actions that the association has taken to diversify.

Diversity in this field is much more important than it looks on paper because there are many different advantages to creating this type of diversity in astronauts. Diversity gives representation to many different groups and can inspire people following in their footsteps. Diversifying space exploration will help NASA grow even more because more people will see joining NASA as a reachable task, not something for only one race or gender. Another reason that diversity is needed in astronauts is because the decision of who gets recruited to go to space should not be determined by skin color or sex. As stated before, it should be determined by the qualifications of the person themselves. 

Some may argue that the most qualified applicants are hired and just happen to be mostly white men. When it comes down to it, there are root issues that create this problem before it is realized. Due to systemic biases that occur in almost every part of our society, women and people of color are less likely to complete higher education, be put in leadership positions, and be taken seriously in science-based fields. For example, black people only make up about 14% of college students in the United States, as well as representing only 3% of PhDs. In addition, the science community has tried to prove that women are inferior to men in the past (Oreskes, 2020). This goes to prove that the problem in space diversity is not only at the top levels, it starts from the moment a future scientist finds their love for space. These systemic problems prevent people from climbing the ranks to eventually become an astronaut. The top cannot fully mend until the roots are fixed, but it can be improved.

Old beliefs have stopped qualified people from getting the job in the past which may pose a massive risk. If you were putting someone in charge of a multi-million-dollar piece of technology, don’t you think you would want them to be the most qualified? If you were picking between a mediocrely qualified white man and an extremely qualified African American woman, who would you pick? In the past the answer was always the white man which may have hindered space exploration. We may be much more advanced if these biases never held us back. If equality is created in space travel then it will set an example for us all and show the world that we are judging people by their ability to get the job done and not by something so superficial as skin color and sex. 

Space exploration lacking diversity is a product of the systems built across the world that promote systemic racism. In order to see the full benefits of diversifying the groups of astronauts who explore space, whole systems must be changed, which is being worked on. Bringing people from different backgrounds and cultures offers different perspectives and intelligence on situations as well as unique contributions. This is extremely important for a group of astronauts who need everyone’s skills and decision making when it comes to exploring the unknowns of space. Diversifying space exploration can ultimately lead to more success when making discoveries and coming to conclusions about space. 

The space industry in its entirety can benefit from diversifying its workers, not just exploration. An inclusive workplace promotes a safe and comfortable environment which allows for an efficient and productive industry. It also allows for the opportunity for breakthroughs in space, because people from different backgrounds will have different perspectives. The benefits of space exploration diversity are proven through the work that has been accomplished by people who are not the dominant white male. 

Besides these accomplishments, it is important to recognize that having astronauts that look different is necessary in this day and age. It is important that we have representation of minorities in an industry like space for many reasons. Astronauts are often seen as heroic figures in our society that are greatly respected for their work. Having astronauts that come from different backgrounds and are of a different ethnicity, gender, etc. increases the self esteem of those minorities who feel misrepresented. Because of this, bringing diversity to the space industry can prevent harmful stereotypes from continuing to be spread. 

The space industry also is a large contributor to our relationships globally. Partnerships and collaborations between nations are one of the benefits that come from space exploration, seeing as it is a global endeavor. Having trust and diplomacy in our nations is important, so having a space industry that is efficient is going to allow this. To understand how diversifying the space industry can improve it, it is important to recognize the crucial ways in which our society actually benefits from space exploration. 

Working towards diversity for space exploration is just one system that needs to be changed, but is one that will benefit our future extremely. The space industry is one that brings a lot of benefits toward our society, which are important to understand. Of course, space exploration benefits our society by bringing new knowledge and making discoveries about Earth. But the technologies that are created in this industry can contribute to aspects of everyday life, making innovation one of the main promoters of the space industry.