When Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore launched into space last June, they expected an eight-day test flight aboard Boeing’s Starliner capsule. Instead, they spent 286 days orbiting Earth, their return delayed by technical malfunctions. On Tuesday, they finally splashed down in the Gulf of Mexico, ending a mission that stretched far beyond its original scope.
However, it wasn’t the astronauts that were now firmly grounded — it was their paychecks too.
Despite the extraordinary nature of their work, Williams and Wilmore had the same limited benefits as any other federal employee on a business trip. “While in space, NASA astronauts are on official travel orders as federal employees,” said Jimi Russell, a spokesman for NASA’s Space Operations Mission Directorate. This means they received no overtime, holiday pay, or hazard compensation for their extended stay.
A $5 Incidentals Allowance
The only perk is a daily “incidentals” allowance that is a standard $5 per day for any location on the business trip — even if that location is in space. The U.S. General Services Administration defines incidentals as “fees and tips given to porters, baggage carriers, hotel staff, and staff on ships.”
So, besides their standard $152,258 annual salary, Williams and Wilmore received only $1,430 for their unplanned 286 days in space.
Becoming an astronaut is a lifelong dream for millions of people, but only a fraction make the cut. Let’s be real, if you become an astronaut, you’re not doing it for the money. However, many may find it odd or perhaps even unfair that astronauts receive so little compensation relative to the huge risks they face.
Mike Massimino, a veteran of two Space Shuttle missions, put it bluntly: “There’s no hazard pay, there’s no overtime, there’s no comp time. There’s no financial incentive to stay in space longer.”
For their part, Williams and Wilmore don’t seem to mind it at all. “This is my happy place,” Williams told reporters in September. “I love being up here in space. It’s just fun, you know?”
Wilmore echoed this sentiment when he recently pushed back on the narrative that they were “stranded” or “abandoned” in response to a recent social media post from President Trump. “We don’t feel abandoned, we don’t feel stuck, we don’t feel stranded,” he said in February.
Ken Bowersox, NASA’s space operations mission chief and a former astronaut, summed up the mindset required for the job: “Every astronaut that launches into space, we teach them don’t think about when you’re coming home. Think about how well your mission’s going and if you’re lucky, you might get to stay longer.”
Still a good mission
At least the extended mission wasn’t without purpose. Williams and Wilmore spent their time conducting important scientific research, inspecting hardware, and maintaining the International Space Station.
Wilmore helped configure a new airlock, while Williams tested athletic performance in zero gravity. In January, Williams broke the record for the most cumulative hours spent spacewalking by a female astronaut. With 62 hours and 6 minutes outside the ISS, Williams surpassed Peggy Whitson’s previous record, securing her place as the fourth most experienced spacewalker in NASA history.
For Williams and Wilmore, the extra time in orbit was a chance to do what they love, even if it didn’t come with a pay raise. As Clayton Anderson, who spent 152 days on the space station in 2007, noted on social media: “Being an astronaut was amazing and my dream job, but it IS a government job with government pay.” Anderson earned an extra $172 during his mission during a time when the incidentals allowance was $1.20 per day.
Some careers are entirely driven by passion, not paychecks. And for those who dream of reaching the stars, no amount of money can compare to the thrill of seeing Earth from above. But I don’t think anyone would object to a pay raise for astronauts.
