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Seventeen-year-old Kyvalya Reddy Kunchala, who hails from the quiet town of Nidadavole in East Godavari district of Andhra Pradesh, has taken a leap toward the stars. She has been selected as an Astronaut Candidate (ASCAN) for the Space Class 2025–2029 Astronaut Programme of Titans Space Industries Inc. (TSI), a Florida-based space technology and spacecraft development company working to develop a variety of spaceflight programmes, including human spaceflight. Ms. Kyvalya, as an Astronaut Candidate, will undergo a comprehensive astronaut training programme, an eligibility she has earned after an intense multi-stage global selection process that culminated in a final interview with TSI’s top leadership, including its CEO, Chief Astronaut, and COO and Chief Engineer. Over the next four years, Ms. Kyvalya will train under some of the world’s most respected spaceflight experts. Her mentors will include TSI’s Chief Astronaut and a NASA veteran with 224 days in space William McArthur and Brazil’s first astronaut and TSI’s Deputy Chief Astronaut Marcos Pontes. She will also be guided by Dr. Vladimir Pletser, a former European Space Agency astronaut trainer and Dr. Mindy Howard, a mental preparedness coach for astronauts. Representing over 36 countries and nearly 150 astronaut candidates, the Titans Space Class of 2025–2029 is an international collaboration in space exploration. “This feels like moving a step closer to my dream of becoming an astronaut,” said Ms. Kyvalya, who has completed her Intermediate education and is applying for admission to an astrophysics programme in a university in Germany. According to a letter she received from TSI, her astronaut journey will unfold in two stages. The phase-1 (2026–2027) will combine theoretical learning with extreme physical challenges-- from zero-gravity flights and neutral buoyancy drills to scuba diving, high-altitude skydiving, and mountain expeditions, designed to simulate the rigours of space travel. In Phase 2 (2027–2029), the Astronaut-Designate teen will move to advanced mission-specific training, focusing on space station operations, lunar base construction, and simulated lunar surface activities. TSI has tentatively scheduled its first crewed spaceplane mission for 2029, expected to orbit Earth twice in a five-hour flight reaching 300 km altitude. Astronauts like Ms. Kyvalya will conduct microgravity experiments and witness two sunrises and sunsets from space, marking a major milestone in commercial human spaceflight, said the letter. Early achievements Ms. Kyvalya’s fascination with the cosmos began early. To understand the universe, she pursued astronomy with passion and purpose, a pursuit that has already brought her national and international recognition. At 15, she became the youngest Indian to complete the International Air and Space Programme in 2023, hosted at a NASA facility. As a NASA citizen scientist, she discovered two provisional main-belt asteroids -- 2020 PS24 and 2021 CM37, she was a national finalist in ‘NASA’s Scientist for a Day’ contest (2021) and has received multiple recognitions from ISRO. Her accolades include silver honours in the International Astronomy and Astrophysics Competition (2022, 2025). Beyond science, Ms. Kyvalya co-founded the Astronomy Kids Club, inspiring young learners to explore the universe. She is an ambassador for the Spaceport India Foundation, a Black Belt (1st DAN) karate instructor, a trained Kuchipudi dancer who received the Natyabala Award, and a talented artist and writer. “I dream of one day winning a Nobel Prize in Physics and exploring space as an astronaut,” Ms. Kyvalya said, her voice brimming with excitement.
