How much money does a NASA astronaut make?

It is the dream of many children, but it is a privilege that few can achieve. In fact, of the hundreds of thousands who apply for this job, there are only a few dozen astronauts.

But what is the salary that Space explorers After several years of training?

According to the portal specializing in labor issues, work.chron.com, there is Two salary ranges for astronauts, Depending on whether they are of civilian or military origin.

On the other hand, these ranges are determined by the General Program (GS), which is the predominant salary scale for federal employees in the United States, especially those who work in professional, technical, managerial, or clerical positions.

Photo: AP / John Minchillo, file

This system consists of 15 degrees of GS-1, The lowest level, even GS-15, The highest level. There are also 10 steps within each row.

According to the aforementioned portal, by 2018, civilian astronauts had a salary rating between GS-11 and GS-14.

Starting salaries start at just over $ 66,000 a year. On the other hand, experienced astronauts, They can earn over $ 144,566 a year.

For military astronauts, such as those who belong to the military or other military, they are given a salary rating based on their active duty status.

astronaut
Photo: Bill Ingalls / NASA via AP, File

Thus, according to Crohn, the colonel or captain receives a commission with an O-6 salary. After eight years of service, they’d make $ 8,030 a month or $ 96,360 a year.

Ten years of service generate a salary of $ 8,073 a month, or $ 96,876 a year, while 20 years increase the salary to $ 10,295 a month, or $ 123,540 a year. And with the rank of brigadier general, the astronauts are assigned to the rank of brigadier general, Crohn says. Pay Score of O-7 “.

They indicated that after eight years of service, they would earn $ 9,906 a month or $ 118,872 a year.

“After 10 years of active duty, the salary increases to $ 10,212 a month, or $ 112,544 a year. With 20 years of service, the military’s salary is $ 12,591 a month or $ 151,092 a year.”

Also, according to information provided by Chron, astronauts enjoy a whole series of benefits and rewards, such as medical insurance and housing assistance.

But, as we mentioned earlier, accessing one of these jobs is really difficult, because, as Crohn reports indicates, although NASA is always looking for astronauts, “the probability that you choose the program is about 0.7 percent,” according to Colonel Tim Cramer. Retired NASA astronaut. “

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