NASA Astronaut Anil Menon Set for July 14 Mission to ISS

Menon, a physician and former SpaceX flight surgeon, will serve as a mission specialist aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule. The spacecraft will lift off from Kennedy Space Center in Florida as part of NASA's Crew-11 rotation.

The mission marks Menon's first spaceflight. He was selected as a NASA astronaut in 2021 and completed basic training in 2023. During his eight months aboard the orbiting laboratory, he will conduct experiments in biology, physics, and materials science.

Menon holds degrees from Stanford University and Harvard Medical School. Before joining NASA, he worked as a flight surgeon for SpaceX, supporting the company's Crew Dragon missions. He also served as a physician in the U.S. Air Force Reserve.

The Crew-11 mission will include three other astronauts: NASA commander Nicole Mann, pilot Josh Kutryk of the Canadian Space Agency, and mission specialist Koichi Wakata of JAXA. The team will join the station's current Expedition 70 crew.

NASA has not yet announced the specific date for the crew's return to Earth. The ISS remains a hub for international collaboration, hosting astronauts from multiple countries for continuous scientific research.