Indian-Origin NASA Astronaut Anil Menon Reaches ISS, Shares First Video From Space

NASA astronaut Anil Menon, who traces his roots to India, has arrived safely at the International Space Station along with Roscosmos cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Anna Kikina. The three crew members launched aboard the Soyuz MS-29 spacecraft at 10:47 am EDT from the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan on Tuesday. 

After a quick three-hour, two-orbit journey, the capsule docked at 1:52 pm with the station's Prichal module, bringing the ISS crew to 10 for the next two weeks.

Hours after arriving, Menon shared a video from orbit on his X account. The clip showed Earth from space with the caption: "Day 1 in orbit and I'm overwhelmed by gratitude, love, and beauty for this Earth we share. Hello from the International Space Station".

Watch the video here: 

Day 1 in orbit and I'm overwhelmed by gratitude, love, and beauty for this Earth we share. Hello from the international space station! pic.twitter.com/N3azT84Wa9

— Anil Menon (@astro_anil) July 15, 2026

In a 1-minute-09-second video recorded aboard the International Space Station, Anil Menon reflected on the people and organizations that helped him achieve his lifelong dream of traveling to space.

"Hello from the International Space Station. It's day one for me," he began, before thanking family members Anna, Grace and James for their support. He also wished Grace a happy birthday and expressed gratitude to his former colleagues at SpaceX.

"Thank you all for teaching me how to do the impossible. I have used that lesson time and time again," Menon said.

The NASA astronaut also paid tribute to the U.S. Space Force, calling space "the biggest domain" and saying he was proud to serve alongside its members.
Thanking NASA, Menon praised the agency's ambitious goals, including returning humans to the Moon and eventually sending them to Mars.

"I'm happy to be working alongside you, using the Space Station as a stepping stone to those huge dreams of ours. Let's go, team. Let's do this," he said.

Who Is Anil Menon?

Dr Anil Menon is a NASA astronaut, emergency medicine physician and former SpaceX flight surgeon. Born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, to an Indian father with roots in Kerala and a Ukrainian mother, Menon was selected as part of NASA's 2021 astronaut class.

Before joining NASA, he supported human spaceflight missions at SpaceX and served as a flight surgeon for the Air Force. With his arrival, Menon becomes one of the few people of Indian origin to travel to space, joining a list that includes Rakesh Sharma, Sunita Williams, Kalpana Chawla, Raja Chari and Sirisha Bandla.