NASA is taking applications for its next class of astronauts, the agency announced on Saturday at an air show at the Kennedy Space Center. The new recruits will train for missions to the Moon and, eventually, to Mars, as the Artemis program works toward a permanent lunar base.
Applications close on December 3, 2026. NASA expects to make its final selections by late 2027, with training starting in early 2028, the same year the agency aims to return astronauts to the lunar surface after an absence of more than half a century.
It is the first astronaut recruitment drive in two years. More than 8,000 people applied in the last round, and 10 made the final cut in September 2025. NASA now has just 32 active astronauts, and officials say the workload ahead outstrips the number of crew available.
Artemis III commander Randy Bresnik told the Associated Press on Saturday that the new class will be needed to grow the program. This will be NASA’s 25th astronaut class since the original Mercury Seven in 1959.
Applicants must be US citizens with a college degree and professional work experience. NASA’s own requirements call for a master’s degree in a science, technology, engineering or mathematics field, plus at least three years of related experience after the degree.
Source: Associated Press
