NASA astronaut Anil Menon to embark on ISS mission in July 2026

NASA astronaut Anil Menon, a physician, engineer and former military officer of Indian origin, is set to undertake his first spaceflight — an eight-month mission aboard the International Space Station (ISS).

According to NASA, Menon will launch on July 14, 2026, aboard the Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. He will be accompanied by Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina. The crew is expected to return to Earth in the spring of 2027.

Menon, who holds US citizenship, was born to Indian immigrant parents. He earned his medical degree from Stanford University and served as a flight surgeon for the US Air Force before being selected as a NASA astronaut in 2021. His training includes survival skills, spacecraft systems and scientific experiments.

The mission will focus on conducting research in microgravity, including experiments in biology, physics and Earth observation. The ISS serves as a laboratory for international collaboration, with astronauts from multiple countries working together.

This flight marks Menon's first journey into space. He is part of a growing number of astronauts of Indian heritage who have participated in space missions, including Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams.