Donald Pettit
Photo: NASA Headquarters / NASA/Bill Ingalls / Public domain (US government work)
Donald Pettit is an American chemical engineer and NASA astronaut, born on 20 April 1955, best known for his orbital astrophotography and for in-space inventions such as the Space Cup, which received the first patent for an object invented in space. He has flown on Soyuz TMA-1 and STS-113 in 2002, STS-126 in 2008, Soyuz TMA-03M in 2011 and Soyuz MS-26 in 2024. He also joined a six-week expedition to find meteorites in Antarctica. In 2026, at age 71, he is NASA’s oldest active astronaut. Wikidata records 590 days in space.
- Born
- 20 April 1955
- Country
- United States
- Flights
- 5: Soyuz TMA-1 (2002), STS-113 (2002), STS-126 (2008), Soyuz TMA-03M (2011), Soyuz MS-26 (2024)
- Time in space
- 590 days 1 hours
- Stations visited
- International Space Station, as part of Expedition 6, Expedition 30, Expedition 31, Expedition 71, Expedition 72
Data as of 2 November 2026. Source: Wikidata (CC0). All people who have flown in space.
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