Nichole Ayers — SPARQNOW

At-a-Glance

NASA Astronaut
Lieutenant Colonel in the United States Air Force
Pilot for the SpaceX Crew-10 mission to the International Space Station, launching March 2025
Logged over 200 flight hours during Operation Inherent Resolve
Master's degree in computational and applied mathematics from Rice University (2013)
Bachelor's degree in mathematics with a minor in Russian from the United States Air Force Academy (2011)

Biography

Nichole Rhea Ayers is a lieutenant colonel in the United States Air Force and a NASA astronaut. She was selected as one of ten candidates for NASA Astronaut Group 23 on December 6, 2021. In August 2024, Ayers received her first spaceflight assignment, launching to the International Space Station as the pilot of the SpaceX Crew-10 mission on March 14, 2025. She remained aboard the station for six months as part of Expedition 72 and 73, ultimately returning on August 9, 2025.