Public sentiment towards NASA's shutdown is largely negative, characterized by frustration, distrust, and skepticism regarding the government's motives and transparency. Many commenters express disbelief over the timing of the shutdown coinciding with significant astronomical events, leading to conspiracy theories and calls for more accountability from both major political parties.

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With my experience as a NASA contractor, we were still able to continue working and getting paid as normal and a lot of times had to hold down the fort while the federal employees were furloughed. 

From discussions with our COR, they always tried to fund contracts enough so they will last through any potential furlough.  This became an issue during that really long furlough as some contracts came close to exhausting their funds and those contractors either had to take PTO or unpaid leave.

Astro_Afro1886

Technically - If there is funding on the contract, you can keep working. Once that funding runs out, you stop working.  Contractors are not allowed to work at risk unless it’s an emergency, it’s a violation of the anti deficiency act.  

That’s all dependent on the federal facility being open in a shutdown.  If the building is “closed” then contractors don’t work.  

Some offices also don’t allow contractors in space unless a Gov personnel is present (which defeats the purpose of security clearances).

Rumpelteazer45

Completely dependent upon your specific contract and how much, if any forward funding it has.  Talk your management.  There's no accurate blanket answer.

If you do get furloughed, you almost certainly will not get back pay, unlike the CS employees.

AirborneSysadmin

Are you an on-site support service contractor? Will assume yes (as opposed to someone working at Boeing at a Boeing facility).


There is no perfect guaranteed answer. What I have experienced and observed as a contractor and as a CS, is that contractors are barred from the facility and are on unpaid furlough. Generally they have been made whole eventually, but this is not written into law like it is for CS. In some cases contracting firms with enough residual funding and other office space off-site have been able to maintain some operations with pay.


Certain Artemis activities are likely to be "excepted" i.e. required to continue work during a shutdown. That determination is ongoing but you won't hear anything until the shutdown is almost begun.


If it feels like nobody is talking about it that's just how these go. Usually there is a last minute resolution, and even when there isn't, NASA likes to say that it is illegal to plan ahead for a smooth shutdown.

Appropriate_Bar_3113

As a contractor working the same program, for my particular situation, we are currently funded through the end of October. In general, it’s highly likely that work on Artemis will be excepted on the CS side, so no change in my status unless the contract funding dries up. Not sure what work your contract is providing for Artemis but if there were to be layoffs of any substantial amount of your contract’s personnel, they would likely have to provide at least 30 day notices to affected employees. We had a contract all hands yesterday and this got talked. Also, since I co-locate with NASA onsite, I can tell you that at the directorate level for my org, they are already dusting off the shutdown paperwork, as the division chief and his deputy were scrambling yesterday afternoon to make sure plans are in place.

Comprehensive_Ad2477

We are in new territory. Who knows what is going to happen. Politics has never been this bad for NASA

clearlygd

If your program is already funded for the year, then you will most likely continue working as is. If it is not funded, then you are out of luck.

CompleteToe1133

You go on PTO.  If you dont have any/enough PTO, you go on LWOP.  Thats how it usually works, depending on what company you work fir and thevterms of your contract.

RunExisting4050

Every day I am thankful that JWST launched before all of this insanity.

quickblur

Ah yes, the one mission that is not only the most impractical but also the furthest from completion. 

byerss

Some 15,000 NASA employees were sent home this week as a government shutdown began, halting work across much of an agency already grappling with budget cuts and widespread job losses.

But at least one NASA effort appears to be moving full steam ahead: the Artemis program.

With the goal of returning astronauts to the lunar surface for the first time in five decades, the Artemis program has been deemed essential work amid the government shutdown. The exception came as NASA leadership and a bipartisan group of lawmakers have made it clear they view beating China to the moon as a national security imperative.

Apparently "Fucking stupid" is too short of a comment

But this is fucking stupid.

rockstar504

Any hope for that starts with removing the maga cancer

_Kine

Some people I know that have been at nasa for two decades at this point in niche fields with knowledge literally a dozen people on the planet have are not working now. If they leave the institutional knowledge will never recover.

djn808

Acronyms, initialisms, abbreviations, contractions, and other phrases which expand to something larger, that I've seen in this thread:

|Fewer Letters|More Letters|
|-------|---------|---|
|[ESA](/r/Space/comments/1nx2c8r/stub/nhmnlag "Last usage")|European Space Agency|
|[JWST](/r/Space/comments/1nx2c8r/stub/nhmnvzn "Last usage")|James Webb infra-red Space Telescope|
|[LEO](/r/Space/comments/1nx2c8r/stub/nhkewzb "Last usage")|Low Earth Orbit (180-2000km)|
| |Law Enforcement Officer (most often mentioned during transport operations)|
|[SLS](/r/Space/comments/1nx2c8r/stub/nhlikf2 "Last usage")|Space Launch System heavy-lift|

|Jargon|Definition|
|-------|---------|---|
|[Raptor](/r/Space/comments/1nx2c8r/stub/nhnv45t "Last usage")|[Methane-fueled rocket engine](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Raptor_\(rocket_engine_family\)) under development by SpaceX|

Decronym is now also available on Lemmy! Requests for support and new installations should be directed to the Contact address below.

----------------
^(5 acronyms in this thread; )[^(the most compressed thread commented on today)](/r/Space/comments/1ny3uh0)^( has 12 acronyms.)  
^([Thread #11730 for this sub, first seen 3rd Oct 2025, 19:26]) 
^[[FAQ]](http://decronym.xyz/) [^([Full list])](http://decronym.xyz/acronyms/Space) [^[Contact]](https://hachyderm.io/@Two9A) [^([Source code])](https://gistdotgithubdotcom/Two9A/1d976f9b7441694162c8)

Decronym

Not true. X-59 was exempted on its way to first flight as well as many other aeronautics projects like global hawk. 

Don’t forget NASA does aeronautics too and isn’t only just Johnson and Kennedy

emiller7

Trump will claim HE ALONE returned to the moon. Don't give that pos the opportunity. With him ruling America, we'll never catch up to China and Russia will reach there second.

totally_anomalous

Am I the only one who finds it sad that we're racing with ourselves from 60 years ago?

It's like the 30 year old still wearing his letterman jacket from high school.

PilotKnob

If you think we are going back to the moon, you aren't paying attention. Maybe they will lob a few astronauts for a couple orbits around the moon and back - but that doesn't fit in with what the coup leaders have been saying and doing. They have promised to defund, destroy, depopulate and divert what's left into their offshore shell corps. As someone who grew up obsessed with NASA and space exploration - this makes me sick. Elections have consequences.

Sniflix

Tunnel vision at NASA guarantees they will fall behind on many things, whether or not they succeed in getting to the Moon first. Again.

johnabbe

I feel that Artemis II will fly - sometime - and successfully fly around the moon.  I have serious doubts about Artemis III landing.  If NASA puts their trust in that drug addict Elon Musk to build the lander, next boots in the dust will be Chinese.

CatDaddyTom

people being thrown off health care and dying of preventable diseases, but hey let's send 3 people to the moon to do nothing that hasn't been done already.

NuncioBitis

This is the right thing. If NASA is going to exist, it needs to have one mission and focus on it instead of acting like a sprawling university doing a bunch of random, scattered projects. 

LoundnessWar

Ask your PM, it depends on the contract and the color of money being used to fund that contract.

frameddummy

Agree, talk to your contract leadership.  Typically NASA forward funds contracts, and contracting officers, in my experience, are good at providing as much funding as they can when a shutdown is looming.  I know of contracts that are funded into December 2025.

whjoyjr

I've been a NASA contractor for 8 years now.

The truth is, no one knows for sure. It varies widely depending on the specific contract you're on and it doesn't happen the same way each time. Every time there's been a shutdown it's been uncertain whether we would be paid for not working, whether we would still be going to work, when/if we would get paid at all, etc.

I've been fortunate enough to not miss any paychecks over the years, but I have a feeling this time will be different.

Plus, Trump's threatening to fire all non-essential federal workers if there's a shutdown, which would cause chaos for federal workers and contractors alike even if it would never stand in court.

OakLegs

In a typical shutdown no one is laid off, just potentially furloughed until the funding is turned back on. 

However, we know that today's politics are anything but typical... Plus Trump could lay off the whole Artemis team without even a shutdown as a pretense. He could just do it.

CardinalOfNYC

I can imagine that was and China and I dia would be willing to take them in, even Saudi Arabia has a space program now

Time_Stop_3645

I'd assume the same thing that usually happens.

Either: 

A) you will be Furloughed and told to not report to work

OR

B) You'll be determined to be essential, and continue to work but your paycheck will be delayed.

In each case, your paycheck will arrive once the government reopens...

This is from my mother, who works for the IRS.

Govt. Shutdown events cost the tax payer so much money because every government employee still gets paid while the government is shutdown - just not right away, and yes, that includes if they do not work.  

Unsure how it works for Part Timers but that's how all fully employed.

For Contractors: You have a government contract that should have already been paid to your employer.  If they don't want to allow your contract company to work on the site, then it's up to the contractor on what they do... but you should still get paid.

Alexandratta

This post feels like an intel gathering attempt

popthestacks

Contractors like Boeing. SpaceX, Lockheed, etc, nothing. Direct support contractors (those that work side by side with CS) can be more directly impacted, in years past they may have held enough reserves to hold out for a few weeks. Had a secretary who was a contractor and she got nothing during a furlough. Sucks how some get treated.

Lazy_Teacher3011

Last time they shutdown in 2018 it only lasted 35 days, so you will be ok.

Echo7ONE9ers

I've been through quite a few threatened and actual shutdowns in my life and the experience can be summed up in an old joke:

"Hey, the government's shut down."

"How can you tell?"

ClearedInHot

The democrats currently dont have the numbers to force a shutdown.


So, the contractors should still be paid.

lokicramer

Why would there be a shutdown with trump bullying everyone even his own cult ?

darkgothmog

Ahhh the annual government shutdown propaganda brought to you yearly by your government. Yawn, same old tired story over and over again. Just gets folks all riled up and fighting red vs blue finger pointing.

poohthrower2000

TerrificTJ

"The Johnson Space Center [employed nearly 3,000 full-time-equivalent](https://www.nasa.gov/wp-content/uploads/2024/10/final-fy23-nasa-ecomomic-impact-report.pdf) federal workers in Texas during fiscal year 2023 (though this number has likely dropped [following buyouts earlier this year](https://www.houstonchronicle.com/news/houston-texas/space/article/nasa-workforce-buyouts-20789864.php))."

And those doing mission critical work are not furloughed (ISS, Artemis, etc)   
This is a good number of JSC employees who will still come to work every day and not get a paycheck.

ecogrrl

"A shutdown falls on the president's lack of leadership. I mean problems start from the top and they have to get solved from the top. A shut down means the president is weak".  
*— Donald Trump, CBS “Face The Nation” Interview (2013)*

LHR-Daniels

It's OK, they said we never been to the moon anyway 🤦🏿‍♂️

Gman2000watts

This is all about the Republicans wanting to kill The Affordable Care Act (Obamacare)

longshot1951

persephonepeete

I literally posted here a few days ago stating that they are planning on gutting NASA and y'all just couldn't believe it

SirOakin

For what it’s worth, a great number of people are furloughed/on call, but actually working excepted tasks on Artemis.

AtomicBreweries

Thank You Maxi Water .🙏🙏🙏🙏🙏 🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮🤮

Upper-Experience4497

Holy shlit, NASA has that many employees?

RetroGaming4

15,000 people working on what??  They haven't been to the moon and Elon has done more space launches than NASA in... forever.   Save the tax payers some money and make space travel private!

SnooDingos8194

NASA has halted operations due to the U.S. government shutdown, affecting over 15,000 employees and delaying various projects.

NASA Government Shutdown

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