Intro music.
NASA's 2004 class of astronaut candidates were sworn in and welcomed to the astronaut corps June 14 at the Johnson Space Center in Texas.
In a fitting tribute to the Agency's storied past, the formal ceremony took place in JSC's historic Apollo Mission Operations Control Room.
John Young, an Associate Director of JSC and a veteran astronaut himself, welcomed the Agency's newest explorers.
"I think you're very lucky to be participating in the new Exploration Vision because it is the future, it really is.
And the next hundred years are going to tell us that."
The astronaut candidates raised their right hands and were sworn in by a member of the JSC Human Resources Office.
Afterward, each shared their thoughts and feelings about their new duties.
The first to speak was educator astronaut Joe Acaba.
"Very excited to be here today. I'm ready to begin this wonderful and exciting journey. I think I can stop pinching myself...
I think now it's really happening. So, glad to be here."
The eleven new astronauts will focus on carrying out the Vision for Space Exploration.