School & Science

Astronaut Riddles: 30 Space Riddles with Answers

30 riddles Β· tap Hint or Answer to reveal

What does an astronaut eat for lunch? Where do they sleep? Why do they come home taller than when they left? These 30 astronaut riddles answer questions like that, along with riddles about rockets, spacesuits, moonwalks and the people who went first.

The easy riddles are made for young space fans. The medium and tricky ones are built on real facts from space history and life on the International Space Station, so they double as a science lesson. Every riddle has a hint to keep you in orbit.

Easy Astronaut Riddles for Kids

I’m tall and pointy. I roar, I blast out fire, and I carry astronauts up into space. What am I?

Hint
Before I take off, everyone counts backward.
Answer
A rocket

I have my own air supply, a helmet and thick gloves. Without me, an astronaut could never step outside the spaceship. What am I?

Hint
I’m a very special set of clothes.
Answer
A spacesuit

Twelve astronauts have walked on me, and their footprints are still there, because I have no wind or rain to wipe them away. What am I?

Hint
You can see me in the night sky.
Answer
The Moon

Ten, nine, eight… I count backward, and when I reach zero, the rocket lifts off. What am I?

Hint
New Year’s Eve has one too.
Answer
The countdown

From space, I look like a blue marble with white swirls. Astronauts float by the window, look down at me and miss home. What am I?

Hint
You’re standing on me right now.
Answer
Earth

On the space station, pencils, crumbs, water drops and astronauts all do this instead of falling to the floor. What do they do?

Hint
A balloon full of helium does it in your living room.
Answer
Float

In 1969, I climbed down a ladder and became the first person ever to step onto the Moon. Who am I?

Hint
My first name rhymes with β€œsteel.”
Answer
Neil Armstrong

What’s an astronaut’s favorite key on a computer keyboard?

Hint
It’s the longest key.
Answer
The space bar

Why didn’t the astronaut feel hungry after blasting off?

Hint
Say β€œlaunch” and β€œlunch” out loud.
Answer
Because she’d just had a huge launch.

Astronauts have walked on the Moon but never on me, the red planet. A trip to me would take about seven months each way. What am I?

Hint
I’m the fourth planet from the Sun.
Answer
Mars

Medium Astronaut Riddles

My name comes from two Greek words that mean β€œstar” and β€œsailor.” Who am I?

Hint
You might want to be me when you grow up.
Answer
An astronaut

On April 12, 1961, I became the first human ever to travel into space, circling Earth once in a spacecraft called Vostok 1. Who am I?

Hint
I was a pilot from the Soviet Union, and my first name is Yuri.
Answer
Yuri Gagarin

In 1963, I became the first woman in space and spent almost three days orbiting Earth. Who am I?

Hint
My name is Valentina.
Answer
Valentina Tereshkova

Astronauts on the International Space Station circle Earth about once every 90 minutes. About how many sunrises do they see in one day?

Hint
How many 90-minute blocks fit into 24 hours?
Answer
About 16

Bread is a problem in space because its crumbs float into the equipment. What flat food do astronauts use for sandwiches instead?

Hint
You might wrap a burrito in one.
Answer
Tortillas

When Apollo 13 had a problem on the way to the Moon, an astronaut radioed a famous line that started with the name of the city where Mission Control is. Which city?

Hint
It’s in Texas.
Answer
Houston (β€œHouston, we’ve had a problem.”)

In the United States, I’m called an astronaut. In Russia, I have a different name. What is it?

Hint
My name starts with the same word as β€œcosmos.”
Answer
A cosmonaut

When an astronaut goes outside the spacecraft, tied on with a safety line, to fix something, what is it called?

Hint
It’s not a stroll in the park, but it’s named like one.
Answer
A spacewalk

To practice spacewalks on Earth, astronauts in full spacesuits train inside something huge and full of water. What is it?

Hint
You might go to a smaller one in summer.
Answer
A giant swimming pool. Floating underwater feels a lot like floating in space.

Astronauts use me to stick cups, pens and food packets to the walls so they don’t float away. I have tiny hooks on one side and tiny loops on the other. What am I?

Hint
Some kids’ sneakers close with me instead of laces.
Answer
Hook-and-loop tape, often called Velcro

If an astronaut shouts as loud as she can during a spacewalk, how much does an astronaut floating right next to her hear through the empty space between them?

Hint
Sound needs something to travel through.
Answer
Nothing. Space has no air to carry sound, so they talk by radio.

Tricky Astronaut Riddles for Grown-Ups

Astronauts often come back from a long stay in space a few centimeters taller. Why?

Hint
Think about what gravity does to your back all day.
Answer
Without gravity pressing down, the discs in their spines spread out a little. They shrink back after a few months on Earth.

An astronaut gets teary-eyed watching Earth out the window. Where do her tears go?

Hint
Nothing pulls them down.
Answer
Nowhere. They don’t roll down her cheeks; they collect in a wobbly blob of water on her eye until she wipes it away.

Astronauts on the space station don’t lie down in a bed. How do they keep from drifting around while they sleep?

Hint
They’re cozy, but they’re attached to the wall.
Answer
They zip into sleeping bags that are fastened to the wall.

On the Moon, the Sun can be shining brightly while the sky stays completely black. Why?

Hint
What makes Earth’s sky blue?
Answer
The Moon has no atmosphere. On Earth, air scatters sunlight and makes the sky blue; with no air, the sky stays black.

True or false: you can see the Great Wall of China from the Moon with your own eyes.

Hint
The Moon is about 384,000 kilometers away.
Answer
False. The wall is far too narrow to see from that distance.

During Apollo 14 in 1971, astronaut Alan Shepard did something on the Moon nobody had done before: he played a sport. Which one?

Hint
He swung a club.
Answer
Golf. He hit two golf balls.

On the International Space Station, yesterday’s sweat and urine become something astronauts use every day. What?

Hint
A machine cleans it very, very carefully.
Answer
Drinking water. The station recycles almost all of its water.

In 1992, I became the first African American woman in space, aboard the shuttle Endeavour. I’m also a medical doctor, and I once appeared on an episode of Star Trek. Who am I?

Hint
My first name is Mae.
Answer
Mae Jemison

On Apollo 11, two astronauts walked on the Moon. The third stayed in the command module, circling the Moon alone. Who was he?

Hint
His first name was Michael.
Answer
Michael Collins

Space Mission Game

  • Countdown round: read a riddle, then everyone counts down from ten together. Answer before β€œliftoff” for two points, or ask for the hint and answer for one.
  • Mission control: split into a β€œspace crew” and β€œMission Control.” Mission Control reads the riddles and gives hints over a pretend radio (β€œHouston to crew, over”), and the crew has to answer in full sentences.
  • Classroom space station: after the tricky riddles, ask students to pick one fact (tears, sleeping bags, tortillas) and draw a comic strip of a day on the space station.

Want more space riddles? Try our space riddles, our moon riddles or these Mars riddles.