Space: Nasa's newest astronauts could be heading to the Moon and Mars!

Video caption, Meet the new Nasa astronauts who could go to Mars!

After more than two years of intense training, 13 new astronauts are all set for space.

They graduated on January 10 2020.

This class of January 2020 have been nicknamed 'the Turtles' and have a very bright future ahead of them.

With a revisit to the Moon and missions to Mars, who knows where they might end up!

Image source, NASA

Image caption, Will we see some of these faces heading back to the Moon?

What do we know about the 'Turtles'?

Well, this group weren't picked by accident, there were over 18,000 applicants - a record breaking number for Nasa!

They have been put through more than two years of intense training and the team is made up of seven men and six women.

It's a really diverse group, with people from all different backgrounds including Nasa's first Iranian-American astronaut, Jasmin Moghbeli.

Image source, NASA

Image caption, The 'Turtles' could end up on Mars

Even though their first flight might not be for a couple of years, they could be travelling in some of Nasa's newest vehicles.

SpaceX and Boeing have been working on new spacecrafts to take astronauts to and from the international Space Station.

They hope to have them ready for use as early as this year!

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, It's not all rockets and moon boots, there's lots of ground work too

So what will they do before setting for the stars?

The astronauts will have a number of roles.

Some will help with developing and testing space crafts, others will work on on-going missions.

Others will continue working with robotics and space walking - lots to do!

Image source, Getty Images

Image caption, Could you be an astronaut?

How do you become an astronaut?

Well there's no right or wrong way but there are some handy tips.

Most astronauts study something at university before they actually become an astronaut.

They usually study sciences, engineering and sometimes medicine. A lot of astronauts also learn to fly an aeroplane as well.

Astronauts come from all over the world, so it's handy to know a second or maybe even a third language!

Work hard and keep going.

Being active and healthy is essential, training can be tough so being active and eating well helps a lot.

You've got to be nice to other people, space rockets are very small places and you could be on the same one with someone for years!

Do you want to be an astronaut? We'd love to hear from you, let us know what you want to do in the future!