NASA IS HIRING FOR A MOON BASE

NASA started taking applications Saturday for its next astronaut class, and you apply on USAJobs, the same federal site people use to find GS-9 contracting jobs. The window closes at 11:59 p.m. EST on Dec. 3. This is the 25th class since the Mercury Seven in 1959, and the agency needs the help: the entire active astronaut corps is 32 people. Administrator Jared Isaacman announced it at a Kennedy Space Center air show. Requirements: U.S. citizenship, a master's in a STEM field, and three years of professional experience after the degree. Pilots can swap in flight hours, such as 750 hours of pilot-in-command time in high-performance jets. Then you pass the long-duration astronaut flight physical. Last round, more than 8,000 people applied and 10 made it. Selections come in late 2027, then two years of mandatory training starting by early 2028, then possibly several more years before you fly anything. Artemis III commander Randy Bresnik said NASA has far more work than it has astronauts and told applicants not to delay, since there will be people on the moon by the time this class is picked. His own Artemis III flight next summer stays close to Earth to practice docking with the SpaceX and Blue Origin landers. The south pole landing attempt is Artemis IV, the year after. Officials also noted the moon is about 1% of the experience. The other 99% is Houston.

Why you should give a shit: The federal government is accepting applications until Dec. 3 for a job that ends with you building a house on the moon, and 10 of the last 8,000 applicants got it, which means your odds are terrible and still the best they will ever be.