Hungary has completed its astronaut selection process, choosing 32-year-old mechanical engineer Tibor Kapu to fly into space aboard a commercial Axiom mission.
In 2021, Hungary adopted its National Space Strategy and launched the Hungarian to Orbit (HUNOR) initiative as part of that strategy. With a budget of $99 million, the initiative aimed to send just the second Hungarian to fly into space after Bertalan Farkas became the first in 1980.
In July 2022, Hungary signed a memorandum of understanding with Axiom Space to send one of its citizens to the International Space Station aboard its privately chartered SpaceX Crew Dragon missions. In September 2023, the pair signed a spaceflight framework agreement to cement the mission in the Axiom manifest.
With no active astronauts to call on, Hungary initiated a selection process in late 2021. A total of 244 candidates applied for the position, and the country began its multi-stage selection process. In March 2023, the top four candidates were presented at a press conference, after which they began extensive training in space dynamics, light aircraft piloting, and rigorous physical and scientific work.
On 26 May 2024, to coincide with the 44th anniversary of the launch of the first Hungarian astronaut aboard Soyuz 36, Tibor Kapu and his backup Gyula Cserényi were announced. The announcement was made on the tarmac of the Liszt Ferenc Airport by Hungarian Minister of Foreign Affairs Péter Szijjártó. According to Szijjártó, the final decision had been made the night before.
“Soon, there will be a young Hungarian man who will not be traveling in the usual way. Forty-four years ago, Bertalan Farkas flew into space as the first Hungarian astronaut, and the next Hungarian astronaut will soon embark on a mission as well.”
While the Axiom flight that Kapu will be launched aboard has not yet been confirmed, Orsolya Ferencz, the Hungarian foreign ministry’s commissioner for space science, had previously stated that the mission would take place towards the end of 2024 or early 2025.
