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So much has happened since Neil Armstrong set foot on the moon in 1969.

Today, we have the International Space Station, plans to send manned missions to Mars, telescopes that can see beyond our solar system and agencies across the world aiming to put men and women into space.

If you would love to explore space as a career, you couldn't have picked a better time, especially given the number of private space tourism companies looking to send members of the public high above the Earth.

Shoot for the stars: If you would love to explore space as a career, you couldn't have picked a better time, especially given the number of private space tourism companies looking to send people into orbit

All About Space magazine has taken a look at what it takes to be an astronaut, with an exclusive interview with Major Jeremy Hansen about his day to day life. 

A word of warning: it's not going to be an easy ride and you'll be entering a competitive arena of the best and the brightest. 

If there were ever a stark example of why it pays to absorb as much as possible at school, then the space industry is it.

JEREMY HANSEN TALKS ABOUT WHAT IT TAKES TO BE AN ASTRONAUT 

Jeremy Hansen (pictured) says his childhood inspiration was Neil Armstong

Astronauts are trained to go into space either as a commander, pilot or crew member of a spacecraft. 

Having been selected in May 2009 as one of 14 members of the 20th Nasa astronaut class, Major Jeremy Hansen is one of four active Canadian astronauts. 

He trains in spacewalk and robotics, takes part in geological expeditions and he has established a new training program to simulate a week on board the ISS.

All About Space: What is it like being an astronaut – what opportunities are there?

Jeremy Hansen: I am trained to go into space by Nasa at the Johnson Space Centre in Houston, Texas, but I am hired for Canada.

Currently we're not flying a lot of people into space but, in say five years from now, I think we're going to see some rapid changes developing, particularly with commercial companies getting involved, changing the map of how many people are flying in space and the types of things we're doing with respect to space exploration.

AAS: How did you become an astronaut?

JH: I have a specific recollection as a child of looking at a picture of Neil Armstrong standing on the Moon and just thinking that's incredible. It inspired me to fly. 

As I grew older, I decided I would fly fighter jets so I served as a CF-18 fighter pilot, having joined the Air Cadet Program in Canada when I was 12. 

Flight experience is important if you want to be an astronaut pilot: you need at least 1,000 hours pilot-in-command time in a jet aircraft. It meant, when the Canadian Space Agency asked for applications, I could put my name forward. And that's what I did.

AAS: What is the training like?

JH: It's very challenging and diverse. No two days are the same. I've been in Canada training on a robot arm recently and I'll be doing fighter jet training after that. 

Then I'll be back in Houston for space walk training. I've spent a lot of time studying languages. You need Russian to fly on Russian rockets. The list goes on and on. 

This past Fall I went on a caving expedition where I spent a week learning how to be a caver, and then I spent the next week with five other astronauts living in a cave for an entire week, without a map, doing real science on behalf of other scientists.

AAS: Is there such a thing as a typical day?

JH: The most typical days involve systems training for the International Space Station. The most gruelling ones are in an enormous pressurised pool in Houston, Texas. It's a full-scale mock-up of the ISS underwater and you wear the real space suit they use for spacewalks. 

It simulates microgravity as best we can. You just spend an entire day in a suit going out and executing a real spacewalk plan, fixing items that have failed outside the space station. 

AAS: What is life like on the ISS?

JH: Every astronaut, when they return, says it's busy, that you work hard up there, but you have those moments where you just get to stop for a little while and watch the world go by. There's an area in the space station where you have this 360-degree view and you can view the planets straight below you so you can see where you're going and where you've been. That is true exploration.

AAS: What sort of things do you need to study?

We study geology because we are preparing to go beyond lower orbit. Spacecraft are being designed, techniques are being thought up, we're looking at science that we want to do on asteroids and maybe eventually on the Moon, but certainly on Mars which is our long-term goal and a lot of this is going to be based on understanding the geology of our Solar System and trying to unravel some of the clues. We dedicated a bit of our training time to the study of geology, as it's one of those skill sets that's better learned slowly over time to make you a better geologist in space when you get there. 

Inspiration: Having been selected in May 2009 as one of 14 members of the 20th Nasa astronaut class, Major Jeremy Hansen (pictured) is one of four active Canadian astronauts

Karen Nyberg, a mechanical engineer aboard the Expedition 36 to the International Space Station, is pictured here washing her hair in space

Multi-skilled: Astronaut Jeremy Hansen learns how to take photos in the darkness of a cave to prepare for his trip on the ISS

Unless you have a solid background in science and maths, showing great aptitude for both, many doors will be closed to you. It may sound negative, but it's very much the harsh truth.

For those that make it through, the universe is very much your oyster, so to speak. Space is one of the most exciting industries in the solar system with new advances and fresh breakthroughs taking place regularly.

Whether you become an astronaut and find yourself on a rocket hurtling to a far-flung planet or whether you love to bury your head in research and test incredible theories, the possibilities are wide-open. 

Who knows – you may even be the one who finally discovers life on another planet.

Astronauts have a clear aim: to shoot into the darkness of space to explore and further human knowledge of the universe. 

Of all of the jobs in the space industry, this is potentially the most exciting and certainly the most-recognisable role.

But it's not an easy job to get and there are certain barriers in your way before you even start. Although jobs are increasingly available via private companies, opportunities tend to be restricted given that agencies recruit from their own citizenship.

So to be a Nasa astronaut, you need to be an American citizen, Esa looks for Europeans and the Russian Space Agency wants Russians (Russian astronauts are called cosmonauts). What's more, each one is after a high standard of candidate.

The cost of training an astronaut is huge, so they need to find the very best people from the outset. This is not a role you can learn at university and it will take years of preparation before a successful candidate jets off into space. Even then, flight opportunities are limited.

The latest issue of All About Space magazine (right) takes a look at what it takes to be an astronaut, with an exclusive interview with Major Jeremy Hansen about his day to day life (left)

Chris Hadfield, the former commander on the ISS, pictured playing with water and the lack of gravity

Yet for those who are successful, a career as an astronaut is hugely rewarding. There are two types – pilots and mission specialists – but both suit people who want to learn and who know how to learn.

Be prepared: Jeremy Hansen's pictured in his first run in Nasa's Neutral Buoyancy Laboratory

 Pilots will fly the shuttle and dock it with the ISS, or another satellite that needs servicing or retrieving. These pilots tend to be picked from the armed forces.

Mission astronauts accompany the pilots and work on various research tasks. They will also repair and maintain equipment. The role evolves and needs fresh knowledge and understanding as the years go by.

The job also needs operational skills since astronauts are often put in a position where things aren't going their way, making life uncomfortable, intimidating and scary.

The key is how people react to the situation they are in – space agencies want people who can separate emotion from the situation and think critically, looking for solutions.

This means the training is varied and the job is demanding, fun and challenging. Astronauts will find themselves in extreme situations on Earth and in space, whether it is being flown as part of a team to the Arctic on an aeroplane and left for days at a time to explore and survive, or being stationed on the ISS where they experience weightlessness in cramped conditions. It's all part and parcel of this amazing job.

In space, it's hard to think about a typical day since an astronaut will see 15 dawns every 24 hours. As well as trying to get into a new sleeping rhythm, astronauts need to work.

On the ISS this may involve supervising experiments or maintaining station equipment. Work on the ISS is supported by astronauts on the ground and that is important in furthering space exploration.

They look at the effects of space on the human body, looking at bone-loss in microgravity, or at radiation levels. Space walks and robotics figure highly and it all helps to develop systems and processes that will one day see humans set foot on Mars.

Astronauts training today may well get that opportunity within the lifespan of their career and there is no greater motivation than that.

The weightless movement of the astronauts is because they are in a continuous state of freefall. Pictured here astronauts onboard the ISS have their own kickabout ahead of the World Cup

Hadfield was commander of the ISS, a spaceship the size of a football field with more living space than a five bedroom house. Inside, he describes it as an Alice in Wonderland-type world where you have to decide which way will be 'up'