NASA is taking applications until 11:59 p.m. ET on December 3 for its next astronaut class, and it says the people it picks will help build and staff a Moon Base. Selections come in late 2027.
The chosen candidates will train at Johnson Space Center in Houston. Applicants must be U.S. citizens with a master's degree in a STEM field (science, technology, engineering, and mathematics). NASA also accepts Test Pilot School students with a STEM bachelor's degree, people with medical degrees and professional experience or completed residency training, and people who have finished two years of a STEM doctoral program. Everyone needs at least three years of post-degree experience, and pilots need substantial flight time, including pilot-in-command hours. The application asks for five references (not recommendation letters), STEM transcripts, and a pilot qualifications form where relevant.
The odds are steep. NASA opened applications in 2024 and took 10 candidates from more than 8,000 applicants, fewer than 1 in 800. That class, nicknamed "The Platypi," is still in training. Once finished, its members will join the 32 active astronauts.
That arithmetic shows how small the corps is. Add the Platypi and it stands at 42. A class the size of the last one would be about a quarter of that, before counting any departures. NASA is recruiting while the previous group is still in school, which suggests it wants the pipeline full as lunar work ramps up.
The pitch has also changed. NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said in a press statement that the people selected "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." Note the word "could." Those are possibilities, not assignments.
The number to watch is class size. The last round took 10, and the next one will show how many astronauts NASA thinks it needs for a lunar program.