Members Can Post Anonymously On This Site
First consolidated Officer Training Course for Guardians to begin
-
Similar Topics
-
By NASA
NASA astronaut Anil Menon poses for a portrait at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston. Credit: NASA/Josh Valcarcel NASA astronaut Anil Menon will embark on his first mission to the International Space Station, serving as a flight engineer and Expedition 75 crew member.
Menon will launch aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft in June 2026, accompanied by Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina. After launching from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan, the trio will spend approximately eight months aboard the orbiting laboratory.
During his expedition, Menon will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to help prepare humans for future space missions and benefit humanity.
Selected as a NASA astronaut in 2021, Menon graduated with the 23rd astronaut class in 2024. After completing initial astronaut candidate training, he began preparing for his first space station flight assignment.
Menon was born and raised in Minneapolis and is an emergency medicine physician, mechanical engineer, and colonel in the United States Space Force. He holds a bachelor’s degree in neurobiology from Harvard University in Cambridge, Massachusetts, a master’s degree in mechanical engineering, and a medical degree from Stanford University in California. Menon completed his emergency medicine and aerospace medicine residency at Stanford and the University of Texas Medical Branch in Galveston.
In his spare time, he still practices emergency medicine at Memorial Hermann’s Texas Medical Center and teaches residents at the University of Texas’ residency program. Menon served as SpaceX’s first flight surgeon, helping to launch the first crewed Dragon spacecraft on NASA’s SpaceX Demo-2 mission and building SpaceX’s medical organization to support humans on future missions. He served as a crew flight surgeon for both SpaceX flights and NASA expeditions aboard the space station.
For nearly 25 years, people have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and conducting critical research for the benefit of humanity and our home planet. Space station research supports the future of human spaceflight as NASA looks toward deep space missions to the Moon under the Artemis campaign and in preparation for future human missions to Mars, as well as expanding commercial opportunities in low Earth orbit and beyond.
Learn more about International Space Station at:
https://www.nasa.gov/station
-end-
Joshua Finch / Jimi Russell
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov
Shaneequa Vereen
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
shaneequa.y.vereen@nasa.gov
Share
Details
Last Updated Jul 01, 2025 LocationNASA Headquarters Related Terms
Astronauts Humans in Space International Space Station (ISS) ISS Research View the full article
-
By NASA
Editor’s note: This interview was conducted in October 2023.
As the International Space Station approaches 25 years of continuous human presence on Nov. 2, 2025, it is a meaningful moment to recognize those who have been there since the beginning—sharing the remarkable achievements of human spaceflight with the world.
If you have ever witnessed the live coverage of a NASA spacewalk or launch, then you know the captivating voice of celestial storyteller Rob Navias. Navias effortlessly blends expertise, enthusiasm, and profound insight into every mission.
Rob Navias on console in the Mission Control Center covering an Extravehicular Activity aboard the International Space Station. NASA/Bill Stafford I relay the facts and data with history in mind. You need to maintain a sense of history if you're going to be able to tell the contemporary story properly.
Rob Navias
Public Affairs Officer and Mission Commentator
Navias works within the Office of Public Affairs on mission operations and television in NASA Johnson Space Center’s Office of Communications, leading public affairs activities involving launches and landings of U.S. astronauts and international partner crew members. He is iconically known as the voice of NASA.
He has been a part of some of the most impactful moments in space exploration history, communicating the facts in real time with unmatched clarity. He covered every shuttle mission from the maiden launch of Columbia in April 1981 to Atlantis’ final voyage in July 2011. Navias is known for connecting others accurately and honestly to key moments in time.
Navias’ extraordinary contributions to space communications garnered him the 2017 Space Communicator Award from the Rotary National Award for Space Achievement Foundation. This prestigious accolade is presented to individuals or teams who have made remarkable contributions to public understanding and appreciation of space exploration. Navias’ unwavering dedication to NASA was recognized with the 2023 Length of Federal Service Award, commemorating his 30-year commitment to the agency.
His legacy continued on screen in Cosmic Dawn, the NASA documentary exploring the James Webb Space Telescope’s incredible journey. Featured for his role as the launch commentator during Webb’s Christmas Day 2021 liftoff, Navias brought historical context and lived experience to one of NASA’s most ambitious missions.
As long as we can maintain a shared vision and curiosity, all nations can go a long way up to the universe.
Rob Navias
Public Affairs Officer and Mission Commentator
He began his broadcast career as a correspondent for networks covering the Space Shuttle Program. Before joining NASA in 1993, Navias had a 25-year career in broadcast journalism where he reported the voyage of Pioneer 11, a robotic space probe that studied the asteroid belt and the rings of Saturn, as well as the test flights for the Space Shuttle Enterprise at Edwards Air Force Base in California and the Voyager missions from NASA’s Jet Propulsion Laboratory in Southern California.
Navias also covered the Apollo-Soyuz Test Project as a broadcast journalist. That first international human spaceflight showed the world there was a way for nations to work together peacefully for a common goal, Navias stated.
“Once the commitment was made to fund the construction of an international space station, it broadened the agency’s scope to work multiple programs that could be a stepping stone beyond low Earth orbit,” Navias said.
Rob Navias (left), accompanied by Phil Engelauf and John Shannon, during an STS-114 Flight Director press briefing.NASA I think the greatest legacy of the International Space Station will ultimately be the diplomatic oasis it has provided in orbit for exploration and scientific research.
ROB Navias
Public Affairs Officer and Mission Commentator
Navias explained that during his time at NASA, he has learned a lot about himself. “The day you stop absorbing information, the day that you grow tired of learning new things is the day you need to walk away,” he said. “The challenge of spaceflight keeps me here at NASA.”
Navias underscored the importance of nurturing and retaining the agency’s brilliant workforce who have shaped the pioneering mindset of human space exploration. He believes blending talent, resources, and industry expertise is the key to returning to the Moon and going to Mars. This collaborative mindset has not only resulted in establishing a laboratory in low Earth orbit but also paved the way for future missions.
View the full article
-
By European Space Agency
While satellites have revolutionised our ability to measure sea level with remarkable precision, their data becomes less reliable near coasts – where accurate information is most urgently needed. To address this critical gap, ESA’s Climate Change Initiative Sea Level Project research team has reprocessed almost two decades of satellite data to establish a pioneering network of ‘virtual’ coastal stations. These stations now provide, for the first time, reliable and consistent sea-level measurements along coastlines.
View the full article
-
By Space Force
Col. Nick Hague, the first Guardian to launch into space, visited Vandenberg Space Force Base.
View the full article
-
By European Space Agency
Today, at the Living Planet Symposium, ESA revealed the first stunning images from its groundbreaking Biomass satellite mission – marking a major leap forward in our ability to understand how Earth’s forests are changing and exactly how they contribute to the global carbon cycle. But these inaugural glimpses go beyond forests. Remarkably, the satellite is already showing potential to unlock new insights into some of Earth’s most extreme environments.
View the full article
-
-
Check out these Videos
Recommended Posts
Join the conversation
You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.
Note: Your post will require moderator approval before it will be visible.