Former NASA staffer reveals shocking amount 'stranded' astronauts are being paid for their time in space

A former NASA staff member has explained how two astronauts who have been in space since last year will be paid for their extra time.

Astronauts Sunita Williams, 59, and Barry ‘Butch’ Wilmore, 61, were initially launched into space from Cape Canaveral Space Force on June 5 last year for what was meant to be an eight-day mission.

However, due to technical difficulties with their aircraft, Williams and Wilmore remain on the International Space Station (ISS) to this very day.

While they have managed to keep themselves busy up there with jobs and even the space-walk, many are questioning how the astronauts are being paid.

I mean, they only expected an eight-day trip, right? So, surely NASA will be paying them a bit extra for the inconvenience.

The astronauts began their mission in June last year (Kirk Sides/Houston Chronicle via Getty Images)

Well, as per the Washingtonian magazine, Williams and Wilmore are apparently paid like any employee on a business trip, so essentially their regular salary.

NASA supplies the food and drink, as there's of course no supermarkets up in space, while the space agency provides transportation and lodging.

Cady Coleman, a retired NASA astronaut, told the Washingtonian: "There is some small amount of money per day for incidentals that they end up being legally obligated to pay you."

UNILAD has reached out to NASA for comment.

Having been in space for a whopping eight months at this point, Williams and Wilmore have probably forgotten what it is like living a normal life on Earth.

Coleman knows all about spending time away from our planet, telling the Washingtonian how she'd often float in space by herself.

"It’s almost like you’re a fish in an aquarium, where it’s sort of dark and you’re gliding through this wonderful place," she told the outlet.

The astronauts are on their standard salary, according to an ex NASA staffer (NASA)

On Tuesday (February 11), NASA announced the astronauts may be back home sooner than the previous target date of late March.

The space agency has been able to adjust it scheduled as they are now using the Crew-10 mission as opposed to the SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.

The mission will now launch as early as March 12, though that very much depends on 'mission readiness'.

It will certainly be tricky for the astronauts to adapt to normal life once more after they return.

Williams admitted recently that being in space for so long has meant she's forgotten how to do basic human functions, such as walking.

Speaking on a call to students at Needham High School in Massachusetts, she said: "I've been up here long enough, right now I've been trying to remember what it's like to walk. I haven't walked. I haven't sat down. I haven't laid down."