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NASA needs more astronauts for moon missions and beyond. You can apply now, but only until Dec. 3
"We just don't have enough people, and we're looking for more," one NASA astronaut told Space.com.
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If NASA ever hopes to build a permanent moon base for astronauts, let alone aim for Mars, the U.S. space agency is going to need a whole lot of space travelers. And now, you have a chance to be one of them.
NASA on Saturday (Nov. 7) put out the call for a new class of astronaut candidates who think they have the "right stuff" to fly, live and work in space. Those astronaut hopefuls have until Dec. 3 to apply (the application website is here), with NASA planning to make its final selections in late 2027.
"This is an extraordinary time to join NASA's astronaut corps," the space agency's chief, Jared Isaacman, said in an announcement, which was made during NASA's "Max Power" air show at Kennedy Space Center (KSC) in Florida. "The people we select could walk on the moon, live and work at the Moon Base, and help pioneer the systems and operations that will ultimately carry crews to Mars."
It's been two years since NASA last sought applications for astronauts. In 2024, more than 8,000 people applied, though only 10 — five men and five women — made the cut. They're in the middle of a two-year training program right now.
This new 2027 astronaut group will be the 25th astronaut class in NASA history. Its announcement comes the same year that NASA returned astronauts to the moon for the first time since the Apollo era with the Artemis II moon flyby. Four more astronauts will test Artemis moon landers in Earth orbit on the Artemis III mission in 2027.
NASA currently has 32 active astronauts in its spaceflying corps. The agency has recruited 370 people to fly in space since 1959, when the first seven Mercury astronauts were selected and unveiled to the world.
"There is a lot to be done in order to get all of these new vehicles and the new suits and everything as we continue to work towards the moon, build a base there, stay permanently, and then eventually onto Mars," NASA astronaut Nichole Stilwell, class of 2021, told Space.com in an interview at KSC during the Max Power event. "And so we just don't have enough people, and we're looking for more."
If you're interested in applying to be a NASA astronaut, you should take a look at the requirements first.