NASA has named eight new astronauts - four men and four women - to its Astronaut class of 2013, the first new batch in four years and the first group to include equal number of men and women. These astronaut trainees, who were chosen for NASA's 21st astronaut candidate class, were selected from a pool of more than 6,300 applicants.

One of the four lucky men includes California Polytechnic State University, San Luis Obispo's alumni - U.S. Navy Lt. Cmdr. Victor J Glover, who graduated with a bachelor's degree in general engineering in 1999. He's also a graduate of the U.S. Air Force Test Pilot School. Glover also earned degrees from Air University and Naval Postgraduate School.

Glover, from Pomona, Calif., and Prosper Texas, is currently serving as a Navy legislative fellow in the U.S. Congress. Previously, he was appointed a Naval Aviator in 2001 and served two years in Iraq to support Operation Iraqi Freedom, flying 24 combat missions.

In his career, so far, Glover has been conferred with the Navy Achievement Medal; Iraq Campaign Medal; Global War on Terrorism Service Medal; Air Force Test Pilot School's Ellsion Onizuka 'Prop Wash' Award; and the Shades of Blue Ed Dwight, Jr. Achievement Award.

Glover will begin his two-year astronaut training at NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston in August.

According to the university, once Glover, 37, finishes his training, he will be the fourth Cal Poly alumnus to serve as a NASA astronaut. Previous NASA astronauts who graduated from Cal Pol are: Robert L. 'Hoot' Gibson (Captain, USN, Ret.) - four-time space shuttle commander who earned B.S., aerospace engineering degree in 1969 and Greg Chamitoff and Frederick 'Rick" Sturckow,' (Colonel, USMC, Ret.) both of who graduated with engineering-related degrees in 1984.

Apart from Glover, NASA's newest class features:

- Josh Cassada, 39 - a physicist with a PhD. and an entrepreneur;

- Tyler 'Nick' Hague, 37 - Deputy Chief of the Joint Improvised Explosive Device Defeat Organization;

- Christina Hammock, 34 - Station Chief in American Samoa for the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration;

- Nicole Aunapu Mann, 35 - Integrated Product Team Leader at the U.S. Naval Air Station;

- Anne McClain, 34 - a recent graduate of U.S. Naval Test Pilot School;

- Jessica Meir, 35 - Assistant Professor of Anesthesia at Harvard Medical School and

- Andrew Morgan, 37 - Currently is completing a sports medicine fellowship.

According to NASA, the new group featuring potential astronauts will help assist the agency in exploration, including the first human missions to an asteroid and to Mars.