Will NASA compensate Sunita Williams for her extended ISS stay?
What's the story
NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore, who have been on an extended mission at the International Space Station (ISS) due to technical difficulties, are slated to return to Earth aboard a SpaceX Dragon spacecraft.
They are expected to return no earlier than tomorrow 5:57pm EDT (3:27am IST, March 19).
The Crew-10 mission, which departed on March 15 with a Falcon 9 rocket carrying the Dragon spacecraft, has now successfully docked with the ISS.
Astronaut compensation
Do they get overtime pay for extended stays?
Williams and Wilmore were supposed to be on an eight-day mission. Hence, people are curious whether these astronauts will be paid extra for their extended stay in space.
As per retired NASA astronaut Cady Coleman, there is no special overtime salary for astronauts.
"Astronauts are paid like any federal employee on a business trip," Coleman told Washingtonian magazine. "They get their regular salary, no overtime, and NASA takes care of transportation, lodging, and food."
Additional pay
A small daily stipend
The only other compensation Williams and Wilmore could get is a small daily stipend for incidentals - reportedly just $4 per day, Coleman said.
This means that for their extended stay in space, they could get an additional amount of around $1,148 each.
However, this isn't considered as overtime pay but incidental expenses during their mission.
Salary details
Astronauts classified under the GS-15 pay grade
Williams and Wilmore fall under the GS-15 pay grade, the highest level for federal employees under the General Schedule system.
According to media reports, GS-15 government employees get an annual base salary of $125,133-$162,672. For their extended nine-month stay on the ISS, Williams and Wilmore will earn a prorated salary of $93,850-$122,004.
Including incidental pay of about ₹1 lakh each for their extended stay in space, their total earnings are expected to be around ₹82 lakh - ₹1.06 crore each.