Meet Anil Menon, Indian-origin astronaut traveling to space in 2026
02 Jul 2025

NASA has announced that Anil Menon, an Indian-origin astronaut, will embark on his first mission to the International Space Station (ISS) in June 2026.

He will be part of Expedition 75 and shall launch aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft from Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan.

The crew also includes Russian cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina. They are expected to spend nearly eight months at the orbiting laboratory.

Menon's journey to becoming an astronaut
Career path

Menon, who has been working as a Flight Engineer with NASA, was selected for the space agency's astronaut program in 2021.

After three years of intense training, he graduated with the 23rd astronaut class.

He is an emergency medicine physician and mechanical engineer by education, and has also served as a Colonel in the United States Space Force.

Extensive experience in long-duration ISS missions
Professional achievements

Menon has contributed significantly to several long-duration ISS missions from the ground.

He served as deputy crew surgeon for Soyuz 39 and Soyuz 43, and was prime crew surgeon for Soyuz 52.

He was also SpaceX's first flight surgeon, helping the launch of the first crewed Dragon spacecraft on NASA's SpaceX Demo-2 mission.

He built SpaceX's medical organization to support humans on upcoming missions, and served as crew flight surgeon for both SpaceX flights and NASA expeditions aboard ISS.

A look at his educational background
Education

Born and raised in Minneapolis, Menon has a bachelor's degree in neurobiology from Harvard University, a master's degree in mechanical engineering, and a medical degree from Stanford University.

He finished his emergency medicine and aerospace medicine residency at Stanford and the University of Texas's Medical Branch in Galveston.

In his spare time, he practices emergency medicine at Memorial Hermann's Texas Medical Center.