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Anil Menon (Astronaut) Biography: Age, Career, Family and More

F4U Editorial Desk • Updated September 28, 2026 • 6 min read

Quick Info

Date of birth1976

Age45 (as of 2021)

BirthplaceMinneapolis, Minnesota

ProfessionNASA Astronaut; SpaceX Medical Director; Physician

NationalityAmerican

Marital statusMarried

SpouseAnna Menon

FamilyTwo children (one daughter and one son)

Anil Menon (Astronaut) Biography

Anil Samoilenko Menon is an American physician, aerospace medicine specialist and U.S. Air Force officer who was selected as a NASA astronaut candidate in

Early life and background

Anil Samoilenko Menon was born in Minneapolis, Minnesota, in 1976. He grew up with ties to Indian and Ukrainian heritage and counts Minneapolis as his hometown. Menon completed his high school education at Saint Paul Academy and Summit School before attending Harvard College, where he earned an A.B. in neurobiology.

Education and training

Menon pursued an unusually broad course of study that spans medicine, engineering and aerospace physiology. After Harvard he spent time as a Rotary Ambassadorial Fellow at Jawaharlal Nehru University. He earned an M.S. in mechanical engineering at Stanford and completed his M.D. at Stanford Medical School. His postgraduate training includes an emergency medicine residency at Stanford-Kaiser, a wilderness medicine fellowship at Stanford, a master’s in public health at the University of Texas Medical Branch at Galveston, and an aerospace medicine fellowship in aerospace physiology and medicine.

Career

Menon has built a career at the intersection of clinical medicine, aviation and spaceflight. He is a physician by training, board certified in emergency medicine and aerospace medicine, and holds multiple aviation and medical certifications including Fellowship in the Academy of Wilderness Medicine and authorization as an Aviation Medical Examiner.

He has served as a flight surgeon in industry and government, including roles at Wyle Integrated Science and Engineering Group and later at NASA’s Johnson Space Center. Menon joined SpaceX as Medical Director in April 2018, where he contributed to preparations for the company’s early human flights and work on human spaceflight research, Starship development and private astronaut programs. He also worked as a contract emergency physician and has held a part-time commission as a lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserve.

In addition to his space- and flight-related work, Menon has served as an event physician for the National Basketball Association and has volunteered for disaster and humanitarian relief missions, including relief work after the 2010 Haiti earthquake and the 2015 Nepal earthquake as part of the International Medical Corps. He has logged numerous sorties and patient transports during emergency response operations.

NASA selection and astronaut candidacy

In December 2021 Menon was among ten individuals selected by NASA to enter the Astronaut Candidate program. The cohort began a two-year basic training program in January 2022 that includes military water survival, T-38 jet flight training and scuba qualification for spacewalk preparation. Menon described learning of his selection as a surprise phone call that began with discussion of the Dragon capsule—work he had been involved with at SpaceX—before revealing the invitation to become an astronaut.

Awards and publications

Throughout his career Menon has received numerous honors, including awards for medical and aerospace achievement, recognition from the U.S. Air Force, and academic prizes dating back to his undergraduate work. He has authored more than twenty scientific articles and maintains active roles as an educator and certified flight instructor, teaching general aviation skills.

Public profile

Menon is married to Anna Menon, a SpaceX lead space operations engineer. They were married on October 15, 2016. The couple has two children, a daughter and a son. Menon speaks fondly of his connections to India, particularly the state of Kerala, and has described how time in India shaped interpersonal skills he sees as valuable for astronaut work.

Personal interests and philosophy

Menon trains for endurance events such as Ironman and Kokoro races and enjoys endurance sports in his leisure time. He has explained that his decision to pursue both engineering and medicine was motivated by the multidisciplinary demands of human spaceflight: solving technical challenges often requires fluency in engineering while addressing human health needs demands medical expertise. He has expressed particular interest in studying how the human body adapts in space and translating those findings for broader clinical benefit.

Latest updates

In December 2021 Menon entered NASA’s astronaut candidate program following a career that included service as SpaceX’s Medical Director and prior flight surgeon roles. As of that announcement he was undertaking the standard two-year basic training required before assignment to mission-specific training.
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Recent Work

NASA Astronaut Candidate

Selected as one of ten astronaut candidates in December 2021 and began basic astronaut training in January 2022.

2021
Medical Director, SpaceX

Served as Medical Director at SpaceX, contributing to early human flight preparations, research and private astronaut programs.

2018-2021
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Career Highlights

  1. Selected as a NASA astronaut candidate in December 2021
  2. Medical Director at SpaceX, working on early human flights and Starship research
  3. Lieutenant colonel in the U.S. Air Force Reserve and accredited flight surgeon
  4. Board certified in Emergency Medicine and Aerospace Medicine; Fellow of the Academy of Wilderness Medicine
  5. Volunteer physician for international disaster relief operations
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Frequently Asked Questions

When was Anil Menon (Astronaut) born?

1976

What is Anil Menon (Astronaut) known for?

NASA Astronaut; SpaceX Medical Director; Physician

What is Anil Menon (Astronaut)’s marital status?

Married

Who is Anil Menon (Astronaut) married to?

Anna Menon