NASA Is Hiring Astronauts: How to Apply for the Artemis Moon Missions Before the December 3 Deadline

November 8, 2026 Faizan Altaf

NASA is hiring astronauts — and this time, the people it picks could be among the first to live and work on the Moon.

The US space agency announced on Saturday, 7 November 2026, that it is accepting applications for a new class of astronauts to grow its Artemis programme, the project to return people to the lunar surface and build a permanent base there. The announcement was made during an air show at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Anyone who has ever dreamed of going to space now has until 3 December 2026 to apply. But the bar is high: NASA is looking for US citizens with advanced science degrees, years of professional experience, and the patience to train for years before ever leaving Earth.

This article explains what NASA announced, who can apply, how the selection works, and what the job is really like.

What NASA announced

NASA confirmed on Saturday that applications are open for its next astronaut class — the 25th since the original Mercury Seven were chosen in 1959. The news was announced at the Kennedy Space Center air show, an event promoting lunar exploration and advances in aviation and technology.

The new astronauts will train for low Earth orbit missions, lunar surface operations, and future Artemis missions. In simple terms, they will be prepared for every kind of spaceflight NASA plans in the coming years: trips to the International Space Station (ISS) and future commercial space stations, and missions to the Moon.

“This will be one of its most important classes yet,” NASA said of the new group, according to NASA Spaceflight, which covered the announcement.

Applications must be submitted through the listing on USAJobs.gov, the US government’s official jobs website. The window closes on 3 December 2026 — less than a month after the announcement.

Why NASA needs new astronauts now

NASA has only 32 active astronauts. That is a small team for the workload ahead, and the agency’s own commanders say so openly.

“We have far more work than we have astronauts,” Artemis III commander Randy Bresnik told The Associated Press on Saturday.

NASA wants to expand humanity’s presence beyond low Earth orbit as quickly as possible. The Artemis II crew’s lunar flyaround in April 2026 kicked off the lunar campaign, and the agency intends to return astronauts to the surface of the Moon in 2028 — after an absence of more than half a century.

The plan does not stop at a single landing. NASA is working towards a permanent base on the Moon, built up over time as more rovers, robots, structures, and power grids are launched. Every one of those steps needs trained crews.

The new class will also keep the International Space Station running. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman has said he is considering extending the life of the ISS beyond 2030 if a commercial replacement station is not ready by then. NASA will continue sending astronauts to the ISS and to future commercial stations — and all of those stations will need crews.

Who can apply to be a NASA astronaut

Not everyone can apply. NASA’s requirements are strict, and they are published on the agency’s astronaut requirements page.

To be eligible, a candidate must:

Be a US citizen.
Hold a master’s degree in a science, technology, engineering, or mathematics (STEM) field.
Have at least three years of related professional experience after completing that degree.
Be able to pass NASA’s long-duration spaceflight physical examination.

Pilots can qualify through a different route: at least 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time, including at least 850 hours in high-performance jet aircraft.

The master’s degree requirement can also be met in other ways — two years of work towards a doctorate in a STEM field, a completed medical degree, or completion of an accredited test pilot school programme.

In short, NASA is looking for people who are already highly trained professionals: engineers, scientists, doctors, and pilots with years of real-world experience.

How the selection process works

Getting selected is a long process, and the timeline stretches over more than a year.

3 December 2026: Applications close.
Late 2027: NASA expects to make its final selection.
Early 2028: The new candidates begin their training.
Two years of training: The mandatory training programme lasts about two years, and it can be gruelling.

Even after training, a new astronaut may wait several more years before actually flying to space. That is normal — astronauts spend most of their careers training, supporting other missions, and preparing for their own flight.

NASA has not said how many people it will pick for this class. The last class, announced in 2025, had ten new astronaut candidates.

What the job is really like

Astronauts who have been to space say the most important quality for the job is not bravery or fitness. It is patience.

Frank Rubio, a member of the Artemis III crew, holds the US record for the longest single spaceflight: 371 consecutive days in space. He told the Associated Press that patience is essential for becoming an astronaut.

“It’s important for them to realize most of that work is not going to the moon, right?” Rubio said. “That will be about 1% of your experience. What you’re doing is contributing to the mission of going to the moon.”

In other words, most of an astronaut’s working life is spent on Earth: training in simulators, learning spacecraft systems, studying geology, practising spacewalks in giant swimming pools, and supporting the missions of other crews. The trip to space itself is a small part of the career — but it is the part the whole career is built around.

Bresnik had a simple message for anyone thinking about applying: “We’re going to have people on the moon — so don’t delay.”

The Artemis plan, in simple terms

The Artemis programme is NASA’s plan to return astronauts to the Moon and stay there. Here is where it stands, in plain language.

Artemis II, which flew around the Moon in April 2026, was the first crewed mission of the programme. It did not land — it flew around the Moon and came home, proving the Orion spacecraft and its crew could make the trip safely.

The next step belongs to Bresnik and his three crewmates. They will blast into orbit next summer to practise docking their capsule with a pair of lunar landers — one built by Elon Musk’s SpaceX and the other by Jeff Bezos’ Blue Origin. Their mission will stay close to Earth, with no lunar flyby. It is a dress rehearsal for the following year’s mission, which will attempt to land two astronauts near the lunar south pole.

After that, the work gets bigger: building the infrastructure of a Moon base, piece by piece. Rovers, robots, habitats, and power systems will be sent up over time, and astronauts will assemble and operate them on the surface.

For context, the last time people walked on the Moon was in 1972, during the Apollo programme. NASA’s goal is not just to repeat that visit, but to build a lasting presence — and eventually to use the Moon as a stepping stone for missions to Mars.

How hard is it to get in?

Very hard. NASA’s last call for new astronauts was two years ago, and the numbers show how competitive it is: more than 8,000 people applied, and only 10 made the final cut in September 2025.

Since the original Mercury Seven were announced in 1959, only 370 people have ever been selected as NASA astronaut candidates. That is across 67 years and 24 classes — an average of roughly five or six people per year.

The most recent group, NASA’s 24th class, was also notable for another reason: it was the first time women outnumbered men in a NASA astronaut class. Each new class is given a nickname by the previous class — the 2025 group was named the “Platypi” by Class 23. The new class does not have a nickname yet.

One member of the 2025 class, Dr Anna Menon, was already a record-breaker before she joined: she became the first NASA astronaut candidate to have already flown to space, on the commercial Polaris Dawn mission.

Her advice to anyone thinking of applying is simple: follow what you love. “Pay attention to what you love and what you are good at and pursue that with a vengeance,” she said, “because what I have found is that when you do that, things tend to fall into place.”

What happens next

The application window is open now and closes on 3 December 2026. After that, NASA will spend most of 2027 reviewing applications, interviewing candidates, and putting finalists through medical and psychological testing. The final selection is expected by late 2027.

The new astronauts will begin training by early 2028 — the same year NASA aims to put people back on the lunar surface. They will spend two years learning spacecraft systems, spacewalking, robotics, geology, and survival skills before joining the active astronaut corps.

Meanwhile, the Artemis programme moves on. Bresnik’s crew flies its docking rehearsal next summer, and the landing attempt near the lunar south pole follows the year after. If those missions succeed, the new astronaut class will be training at exactly the moment when Moon missions become routine — and when the first crews of a permanent lunar base are being chosen.

For the handful of people selected, the wait will be long and the training will be hard. But as Bresnik put it, the destination is real: people are going back to the Moon, and this is the class that will help them stay there.

Frequently asked questions

When is the deadline to apply to become a NASA astronaut?

Applications close on 3 December 2026. They must be submitted through the listing on USAJobs.gov.

Do you have to be a US citizen to apply?

Yes. Applicants must be US citizens. They must also hold a master’s degree in a STEM field and have at least three years of related professional experience, or qualify as a pilot with at least 1,000 hours of pilot-in-command time.

How many astronauts will NASA select?

NASA has not announced the size of the new class. The last class, selected in September 2025, had ten members chosen from more than 8,000 applicants.

When will the new astronauts start training?

Training is expected to begin by early 2028, after final selections are made in late 2027. The mandatory training programme lasts two years.

When will NASA return astronauts to the Moon?

NASA intends to return astronauts to the lunar surface in 2028 — more than half a century after the last Moon landing in 1972. A crewed docking rehearsal is planned for the summer of 2027, ahead of a landing attempt near the lunar south pole the following year.

What is the Artemis programme?

Artemis is NASA’s programme to return people to the Moon and build a permanent base there. Artemis II flew around the Moon in April 2026. Later missions will practise docking with lunar landers, land astronauts near the south pole, and build up the infrastructure of a Moon base.

How many people has NASA ever selected as astronauts?

Only 370 people have been selected as NASA astronaut candidates since the original Mercury Seven in 1959. NASA currently has 32 active astronauts.

Conclusion

NASA’s call for new astronauts is more than a job advertisement. It is a sign of how serious the agency is about going back to the Moon — and staying there.

With only 32 active astronauts and a schedule that includes a lunar landing in 2028 and a permanent Moon base after that, NASA needs more people. The new class will train for space station missions, Moon landings, and everything in between.

The odds are steep: more than 8,000 people applied last time, and only 10 were chosen. The training takes two years, and a flight to space can take several years more. But for the people who make it, the reward is extraordinary — a chance to be part of the first generation to live and work on another world.

Applications close on 3 December 2026. As Artemis III commander Randy Bresnik said: don’t delay.

Findivoza