Lieutenant Commander Jonny Kim boasts an extraordinary resume that would make any parent proud. At 40, Kim is a distinguished Navy SEAL, a Harvard-trained physician, and now, a NASA astronaut gearing up for his next significant endeavor, space.
A native of Los Angeles, Kim joined NASA in 2017 and is scheduled to embark on his space mission in March 2025. He will travel aboard the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft, spending nearly eight months on the International Space Station (ISS) with two Russian cosmonauts. His mission will involve conducting vital scientific research and preparing the ISS for future missions.
Kim’s path to space is as remarkable as his achievements. He earned a bachelor’s degree in mathematics from the University of San Diego and later graduated from Harvard Medical School. He began his medical career as an emergency room intern at Massachusetts General Hospital. However, his medical career followed a decade of service as a Navy SEAL, and he is also a dual-designated naval aviator and flight surgeon.
Within NASA, Kim has held multiple roles, including lead operations officer for Expedition 65 and T-38 operations liaison. His upcoming space mission represents the most challenging role of his career—living and working in orbit.
Kim’s mission is particularly notable as NASA faces unexpected difficulties. Two astronauts, Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, remain stranded on the ISS due to severe malfunctions in the Boeing Starliner spacecraft. Helium leaks, more extensive than anticipated, have led to delays in their return. They are now scheduled to return to Earth in February next year aboard a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule.