Astronauts

[spiff]

I'm putting this on this one rather than "Jobs" as i feel it's more appropriate. How much do they earn? I know that most are now "mission specialists" ,but how much are the pilots paid? and from whom? Ta.  xxx

[Ouisch]

In the year 2000, the salary for an astronaut ranged from $42,000 to $71,000 per year, depending upon education and experience.

Some basic info from NASA:

To be an astronaut, all applicants must be US citizens. For the government the first priority goes to a US citizen unless no qualified citizens are available. Also people have to make the career choice of becoming a pilot or mission specialist. Pilots fly the shuttle and eventually may become commanders. Mission specialists help control the robotic arms, payload bay, perform space walks, and most other on orbital tasks. Though in many cases pilots fly as mission specialists.

All astronauts need a bachelor's degree of science from a well-credited college. The degree should be of hard sciences or engineering. Majority of astronauts have additional degrees and work experience. Also you have to be in excellent physical condition. Not definitely an Olympic athlete, but people with diseases like diabetes, kidney problems are rejected. Your vision shouldn't be any worse than 20/200. People who smoke are rarely accepted. Applicants for the job shouldn't have any felonies, bad credits or other black marks on your security clearance. All astronauts are private pilots. NASA also takes people who are good public speakers, have received awards and works well with the others. The choice of undergraduate college isn't very critical. Many astronauts went to Purdue, MIT and other known colleges. At the same time others have been to smaller colleges or even community colleges. But even at this point a degree is always desirable.

[Octavius]

Astronauts (derived from Greek words meaning "star sailor") started out when the Space program began in 1959.  Then there were only seven such people in the entire country. They all were--or had been--in the armed forces. That was only 36 years ago and since then, much has changed.

Today shuttle crews are comprised of Americans from every race, creed, color and gender. As of May 2, 1993, 180 Caucasian men and 21 women, six African-American men and one woman, three Hispanic men and one woman, and two Asian men have been chosen to represent the US Nation in Space.

 

NASA chooses its astronauts from an increasingly diverse pool of applicants that, 'looks like America". From thousands of applications from all over the world, approximately 100 men and women are chosen for an intensive astronaut candidate training program every two years.

 

Astronauts begin their salary in accordance with the US Government pay scale at GS-11 (approximately $39,000.) status and top off at GS-14 (approximately $78,000).

See here for more info...

http://liftoff.msfc.nasa.gov/academy/astronauts/wannabe.html

 

[Octavius]

In 2005 the General Schedule (GS) pay scale for US Government workers on GS-11 to GS-14 is $45,239 - $99,053 (�22,000 - �48,250)