The dream of many children is to be an astronaut. Perhaps due to an incentive from the intense space race of the second half of the last century, the fact is that the figure of the man in the mirrored helmet is part of the imaginary and the idea of working while exploring the universe always sounds fascinating. But sci-fi movie concepts aside, how much does an astronaut earn to risk his life in space launches?
The answer to that question, of course, is not simple. Even because the work of an astronaut varies a lot and also the agency to which he responds and the time of performance. It is even more difficult to become an astronaut, since there are not many vacancies and it is a very competitive market, but we will explain this later on.
To make things easier, let's take the base NASA. The United States Space Agency, a public body, always discloses expenses and salaries to the space team. In the case of Roscosmos, Russia and the National Space Administration of China, this information is a little more scarce.
How much does a NASA astronaut earn?
In practice, NASA informs that a novice astronaut, who has just been recruited, earns an average of US$ 66 per year, which is just over R$ 320 or something in the range of R$ 26 per month. However, professionals with more experience can earn much more.
Most NASA astronauts are at the company's GS-12 and GS-13 levels. An initial GS-12 gets the $66 a year. After a few years, he rises to the next level, still in the same category and in the last phase of the GS-12 he can receive US$ 86 annually. This, of course, depends on the length of service and the performance of the professional.
These are not the last levels yet. After a few years, the professional can go to step 1 of the GS-13 level and make $78 a year. The final phase of the GS-13 boasts the highest salary an astronaut earns, at a staggering $102. A very hefty salary, but one that is very difficult to achieve. These amounts are not unique to NASA and are part of the US Government scale for paying public servants.
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to become an astronaut?
By the way, being an astronaut is already very difficult. At NASA, there is a very competitive competition and, although there is no mandatory academic training, professionals usually have training in the areas of physics, engineering or astronomy. The selection process is considered to be about 74 times more difficult than that of Harvard University and happens once every two years. That is, if you intend to try to be an astronaut, it is good to prepare a lot.
The number of approved is also very low. In 2017, for example, the astronaut class of the season was formed by only 12 of the 18.300 applicants. Remembering that the company's astronauts do not only work on missions led by NASA itself, but also from third-party companies such as SpaceX and Blue Origin.
The process itself mainly involves three elements:
- profile analysis
- medical exam
- interview
Initially, applicants are evaluated by NASA HR to see if they fit the profile. The pre-selected then go to a panel of the Astronaut Classification Panel, put together by about 50 professionals in the field.
o become an astronaut being born in Brazil?
Well, firstly, to participate in the NASA or ESA (European agency) process (you must be born in the United States or in one of the 22 member countries of the European agency, respectively. That is, there is naturally no way to become an astronaut if you are Spanish.
The ESA countries are: Austria, Belgium, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Ireland, Italy, Luxembourg, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland and the UK United. Associated nations also include Canada, Slovenia, Latvia, Lithuania, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Malta and Slovakia.
The good news is that some of these countries have a simplified process for those who want to obtain citizenship, which can facilitate the dream of those who want to be an astronaut.
But is it possible to become an astronaut just by being a Spanish citizen? Well, we only have one such history, that of Marcos Pontes. At the time there was a project in Brazil in partnership with international agencies to take a Spaniard into space. There is currently no such program in progress. However, Brazil participates, for example, in the Artemis Program, which aims to take astronauts to the Moon again. So, who knows, maybe in the future an opportunity like this will appear again.
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