NASA inspector general warns astronaut corps may be too small - SpaceNews
WASHINGTON — The size of NASA’s astronaut corps may soon fall below the minimum level the agency needs to support space station and Artemis missions and other activities, the agency’s inspector general warns.
11 report by NASA’s Office of Inspector General found that the agency’s astronaut corps, with 44 active astronauts, could fall below the “minimum manifest requirement” needed to adequately support International Space Station and Artemis missions as soon as this year as astronauts leave the agency.
According to the report, the NASA astronaut office performed a “sizing analysis” in 2019 and concluded that the corps would fall below the minimum manifest requirement in fiscal years 2022 and 2023.The report did not specifically recommend NASA increase the size of the astronaut corps beyond the new class that just started training.