By Rob Leclerc, from AgFunder
Elon Musk’s goal of sending humans to Mars is getting closer to reality. His company SpaceX has posted a job offer seeking a Farmer.
Responsibilities include farm management, operating farm equipment, procuring inputs and supplies, managing outside contractors, and “other duties as assigned”. Basic qualifications include 10 years of row cropping experience in Central Texas, experience in repair and maintenance of John Deere equipment, and a High school diploma or GED. For farmers used to working 80-hour+ work weeks they’ll be happy to know that this is more of a part-time job, requiring a minimum of 50 hours per week.
The candidate will be working for SpaceX’s “Texas Rocket Development & Test” group, so it’s not exactly sure what our farmer will be doing, or on what planet he will be doing it on. Today’s combines are more sophisticated than a spaceships, so maybe a farmer is the only one who will be able to fly these ships? And most importantly, will this farmer get 40 acres and a space tractor to colonize Mars?
Earlier this year Elon Musk, the founder of both SpaceX and Tesla, said that he was hoping that humans will fly to the red planet by 2026 to start building a fully functioning city, so it makes sense that they’ll need to understand how to grow their own food. There is still a lot of development to be done, but SpaceX is well funded, and was recently awarded a $1.6 billion contract from NASA to use SpaceX’s Falcon Rocket and Dragon space capsule to shuttle astronauts to and from space. The Falcon 9/Dragon made history in 2012 when it was the first commercial ship to dock the international space station. Musk estimated that a round trip would costs $500,000 per person, and take 200 days each way.
We knew that agriculture was a hot profession, but career prospects for farmers are now officially out of this world.
To learn more or apply for the position, visit SpaceX here: http://www.spacex.com/careers/position/5749
IMAGE FROM MARS-ONE Look, aren’t those beehives over there, behind the houses?
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