An off-planet birthday! NASA’s longest-serving astronaut returns to Earth on his 70th birthday.
NASA’s oldest astronaut has returned to his home planet after spending the days leading up his 70th birthday off-world.
NASA’s oldest serving astronaut Don Pettit turned 70-years-old as he returned to Earth following a trip to the International Space Station (ISS).
Pettit spent a total of 220 days in space, orbiting Earth 3,520 times with crewmates Ovchinin and Vagner; they completed a journey of 93.3 million miles before their Soyuz capsule landed in Kazakhstan on Sunday, Pettit’s birthday.
“Today at 0420 Moscow time (0120 GMT), the Soyuz MS-26 landing craft with Alexei Ovchinin, Ivan Vagner and Donald (Don) Pettit aboard landed near the Kazakh town of Zhezkazgan,” Russia’s space agency Roscosmos said.
Green vaporous turbulence; tonight’s show of aurora from @Space_Station pic.twitter.com/ZX0dINFhLa
— Don Pettit (@astro_Pettit) April 5, 2025
70-year-old astronaut ‘doing well in range of what is expected’
Pettit has extensive experience in space: with his latest trip his fourth spaceflight; he has racked up more than 18 months in orbit across a 29-year-long career.
NASA said in a statement that “Pettit conducted research to enhance in-orbit metal 3D printing capabilities, advance water sanitisation technologies, explore plant growth under varying water conditions, and investigate fire behaviour in microgravity, all contributing to future space missions."
They added that Pettit himself “is doing well and in the range of what is expected for him following return to Earth.” The three person crew returned to the recovery staging area in Karaganda, Kazakhstan before Pettit made his way to Johnson Space Center in Houston.
Mother Earth, I am coming home. pic.twitter.com/lxxAQICzMJ
— Don Pettit (@astro_Pettit) April 19, 2025
NASA ended its space shuttle program in 2011; since then, American astronauts have regularly carpooled with Russian cosmonauts to get to and from the ISS, which is constantly manned by an international team of scientists as it travels at a speed of around 5 miles per second.
Get your game on! Whether you’re into NFL touchdowns, NBA buzzer-beaters, world-class soccer goals, or MLB home runs, our app has it all. Dive into live coverage, expert insights, breaking news, exclusive videos, and more – plus, stay updated on the latest in current affairs and entertainment. Download now for all-access coverage, right at your fingertips – anytime, anywhere.
Complete your personal details to comment
Your opinion will be published with first and last names