On the 22nd of March last year the CNCF announced the Kubestronaut Program, but it's more likely you heard about it after KubeCon EU 2024 where early Kubestronauts were showcasing their jackets!

In this post I'd like to showcase and review the sought after jacket and help you evaluate if the juice is worth the squeeze!

What is a Kubestronaut

The FAQ summarises things well:

To become a Kubestronaut, you need to pass all Kubernetes-related certifications: CKA, CKAD, CKS, KCNA, and KCSA. All certifications must be current/active (i.e., in good standing, not expired).

CNCF - Kubestronaut FAQ

What does the jacket look like?

🎉 Tada 🎉

Here it is. It's a "royal blue" jacket with a CloudNative Computing Foundation logo on the front and a Kubestronaut logo on the back.

It features a full-body zipper, long sleaves, and two decently large pockets. The grey accent along the zipper and the back are reflective.

The inside is a grey colour and made of a breathable material, more on that in the statistics section! The rear of the zipper is covered which should reduce discomfort when moving around or wearing less layers underneath.

And this hole isn't a bug, this is a feature! It's a hole for your earphones to reach through to the top of your left-hand pocket.

In a world of phones loosing their 3.5mm headphone jack this may not benefit too many of you, but the wired diehards are sure to appreciate it.

There is also a loop on the neck to help hold the cable in place which is useful when running or hiking a long distance.

Overall the jacket feels well made, useful, and has a variety if nice features! I'm very happy with mine and I think it's quite stylish. It's also a refreshing alternative to a certain shiny jacket you may also be aware of.

Personally I find this much more comfortable to wear out in public and I'll be brining it with me to any CNCF conferences and probably most cloud related events.

Statistics

It's actually pretty waterproof with a 8,000 mm waterproof rating.

It can be machine washed, on a cold gentle cycle.

It's an 8oz/yd2 / 200 gsm, 3-Layer 100% polyester interlock bonded to polyester birdsey if that means anything to you. In laymans terms, it has a soft but sporty texture to it and the inside has a breathable mesh.

This jacket should be suitable for most climates. In colder regions layering up underneath should be sufficient. However in high heat or extreme cold you might only wear it indoors or leave it forever on a hanger!

Should you get one?

Well if you're thinking of buying all the certs at $1645 USD, spending the time swotting up on the material, and spending several hours on proctored exams just for the jacket, I'd suggest visiting a sporting or camping shop or searching online.

If you're already going to be doing the study to broaden your understanding of k8s, or already have several of the pre-requisite certs, maybe consider going for Kubestronaut!

Going for Kubestronaut

If you do decide you just have to have this jacket (or the other benefits), here are some tips:

Consider the Kubestronaut Bundle

• You can often save some money over buying the certs individually.
• It can be more convenient than buying certs one-by-one since the LF Training website doesn't really have a "cart".
• If you already have one or more of the certs run the numbers as to whether the bundle is best for you.

Keep an eye out for deals

• There are frequently discounts and deals for various events or occasions. With these discounts you can save a good chunk of cash which you could put towards training materials or anything else.

Use your training budget or check in with your employeer

• If you have a training budget don't forget to expense the certs.
• Even if you're not going to sit the exams immediately you may want to buy access before your budget rolls-over/expires.
• If you don't have a standard training budget maybe check in with your employeer as they may want a Kubestronaut on their team and might fund things anyway!

I plan to provide some more comprenehsive guidance in future posts on the road to Kubestronaut and sitting the exams so be sure to check back in, or subscribe to the RSS feed!