NASA Opens Astronaut Applications For Future Lunar Base Missions

NASA has opened a new astronaut application window for Americans who want to live and work on a future Moon base, with candidates able to apply now through December 3, 2026.^[1]

The new class of astronauts will be recruited to support NASA's Artemis program, including planned landings near the Moon's south pole and long-duration stays on a permanent lunar base that the agency hopes will pave the way for eventual missions to Mars.^[1] In a notable policy change, NASA now recognizes master's-level nursing degrees as qualifying STEM education for astronaut applicants, expanding eligibility beyond traditional science and engineering fields.

NASA's push for a new astronaut cohort comes as the Artemis program shifts from demonstration missions toward building a sustained human presence on the Moon, with infrastructure plans that include surface habitats, power systems and scientific outposts near permanently shadowed craters thought to hold water ice. These missions are intended to test technologies for deep-space travel, refine procedures for working in low gravity over long periods, and train crews for the greater distance and risk of future journeys to Mars.

Treating advanced nursing degrees as STEM for astronaut selection reflects NASA's growing emphasis on complex medical care, human performance and health systems in harsh environments, as crews prepare for missions that could last months on the lunar surface without quick access to Earth-based hospitals. The broader eligibility rules are also part of a deliberate effort to diversify astronaut expertise, bringing in applicants with backgrounds in clinical care alongside pilots, engineers, geologists and other scientists who have traditionally dominated astronaut classes.

1. NPR