I'm an aerospace engineer in grad school right now who went into the field for the same reasons you mentioned. I once got the chance to speak with a shuttle astronaut about this exact topic: his advice is that, even as an astronaut, you spend very little time in space, and most of your career is working on the ground. His advice, then, is to find a focus or career that you enjoy doing, as you'll spend a lot of time doing that regardless of whether you end up an astronaut. But even with that in mind, I'd say to go for it! I think that, even if things don't go exactly as you imagine, you'll find something to be passionate and excited about; I know I did!
ScorpiosAlpha t1_j27kvb1 wrote
Reply to Likely-hood of becoming an astronaut by MisFitLoves
I'm an aerospace engineer in grad school right now who went into the field for the same reasons you mentioned. I once got the chance to speak with a shuttle astronaut about this exact topic: his advice is that, even as an astronaut, you spend very little time in space, and most of your career is working on the ground. His advice, then, is to find a focus or career that you enjoy doing, as you'll spend a lot of time doing that regardless of whether you end up an astronaut. But even with that in mind, I'd say to go for it! I think that, even if things don't go exactly as you imagine, you'll find something to be passionate and excited about; I know I did!