NASA is hard at work preparing for Artemis 2, its first crewed mission to the Moon in over half a century, which is scheduled to launch in just four months.
The twist? Due to the ongoing government shutdown, a NASA official confirmed to Futurism, agency staff are currently working without pay to make the launch happen — including even the astronauts who are putting their lives on the line for the historic mission, who are currently preparing for it without receiving paychecks.
Even with no pay, the official said that workers are willing to continue preparing the mission, highlighting an extraordinary degree of commitment and passion among the space agency’s ranks.
Contractors working on the Artemis 2 mission are currently still getting paid, though that funding is slated to run out soon.
“All work on Artemis 2 is expected to protect both the property and to protect against risks to the crew introduced by unplanned close out and restart,” a NASA source told Ars Technica. “All of our contracts are funded into early November.”
Some of those contractors are speaking out about how the shutdown is affecting their industry.
“I do think we’re rapidly approaching the point where it will be a significant impact, and it’s more to do with overall infrastructure,” Kirk Shireman, a Lockheed Martin VP who oversees the Orion spacecraft program, told Ars.
“Fortunately, I work for a large company that’s capitalized, and we’re going to be fine,” Shireman said, referring to Lockheed Martin. “But there are a lot of people, a lot of small companies… They’re not getting paid, and ultimately they’re not going to be able to continue working.”
The longer the shutdown goes on, the more chaos will grow. Last month, NASA officials announced that Artemis 2 could launch as soon as February 5, roughly two months earlier than previously anticipated. Whether the agency can still keep itself to that commitment remains to be seen.
There are only a couple of days a month when the Moon and Earth align for Orion to make its journey, which means the Artemis 2 mission could be pushed back by up to a month.
Not only is the shutdown wreaking havoc on NASA’s operations and morale, but it could be giving the United States’ adversaries an advantage in the space race. Officials have repeatedly warned that China could beat the US to the Moon — a possibility that only becomes more likely the longer the government shutdown drags on.
More on Artemis: Astronaut Traveling to Moon Next Year Says He’s Hoping to Take a “Short Nap” on the Launch Pad