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fromFuturism
3 days agoNASA Not Paying Moon Astronauts as They Prepare to Risk Their Lives
NASA staff, including Artemis 2 astronauts, are working without pay during a government shutdown while contractor funding is set to expire soon.
Following countless delays plaguing its efforts to return the first astronauts to the lunar surface in over half a century, NASA could finally be bucking the trend. NASA officials revealed today that the agency's Artemis 2 mission, which will see a crew of four astronauts travel around the Moon and back, could launch as soon as February 5, roughly two months earlier than previously anticipated.
Artemis 2 aims to test several crucial systems, such as astronaut life support, which will be used on the Artemis 3 mission, scheduled to land on the Moon in 2027. The program's goal, said Hawkins, is to maintain a continuous human presence on the Moon. Part of this effort will be to test technologies developed in collaboration with private companies and international partners, including Europe, which could help carry the first astronauts to the next step: Mars.