posted 11-20-2025 02:26 PM               

Anything missing or incorrect? Thanks, everyone.

• First NASA spaceflight with two PhD's: STS-5 (Allen and Lenior)

• First NASA spaceflight with three PhD's and first NASA spaceflight with four PhD's: STS-9 (Garriott, Lichtenberg, Merbold, Parker)

• First NASA spaceflight with four PhD's: STS-9 (See line above)

• First NASA spaceflight with five PhD's: STS-61A (Dunbar, Bluford, Furrer, Messerschmid, Ockels)

• First NASA astronaut to earn a PhD after flying in space: Currie (1997)

• First (and only) astronaut to earn MD degree after flying in space: Hilmers (1995)

• Earliest earned PhD among NASA astronauts: Henize (1954)

• First NASA astronaut to fly in space with an earned doctorate: Aldrin (Gemini XII, nickname: "Dr. Rendezvous")

• First NASA-designated "scientist-astronaut" to fly in space: Schmitt (Apollo XVII)

• First (and only) astronaut to fly on NASA flight with two earned PhD degrees: Favier (STS-78)

• First (associate) professor to fly in space: Garriott (Skylab III)

• First full professor to fly in space: Henize (STS-51F )

• First full professor to fly in space among payload specialist astronauts: DeLucas (STS-50)

• First full professor to fly in space among NASA career astronauts selected in the Space Shuttle era: Sega (STS-60)

• First NASA astronaut to become full professor after flying in space: Armstrong (honorary PhD)

• First NASA astronaut with a PhD to become a professor after flying in space: Lind (full professor, August 8, 1986)

• First astronaut among international astronauts who flew as NASA crewmate to become a professor after flying in space: Messerschmid (full professor, November 1986)

• First payload specialist astronaut to become full professor after flying in space: Wang (May 1, 1988)

• NASA astronaut with the most number of academic degrees overall: Musgrave - BS (1958), MBA (1959), BA (1960), MD (1964), MS (1966), MA (1987)

• NASA astronaut with the most number of graduate degrees, including degrees obtained after last spaceflight: Tie - Musgrave (see above); and Hilmers - MSEE (1977), EE (1978), MD (1995), MPH (2002)

• First (and only) NASA astronaut with a graduate degree in literature to fly in space: Musgrave (STS-33)

• First medical doctor to fly in space: Kerwin (Skylab II)

• First NASA spaceflight with two MD's: STS-51B (Thagard, W. Thornton)

• First (and only) optometrist to fly in space: DeLucas (STS-50)

• First veterinarian to fly in space: Fettman (STS-58)

• First MD/PhD to fly in space: Bondar (STS-42)

• First MD/PhD to fly in space among NASA career astronauts: Linenger (STS-64)

• Longest time between obtaining PhD and first spaceflight: Henize (1954 to 1985)

• Longest time between obtaining PhD and first spaceflight among payload specialist astronauts: Crouch (1971 to 1997)

• Longest time between obtaining PhD and first spaceflight among NASA career astronauts selected in the Space Shuttle era: Sellers (April 1981 to October 2002)

• Shortest time between obtaining PhD and first spaceflight: Yurchikhin (2001 to 2002)

• Shortest time between obtaining PhD and first spaceflight among NASA career astronauts: Dunbar (1983 to 1985)

• Longest time between obtaining MD degree and first spaceflight: W. Thornton (1953 to 1983)

• Shortest time between obtaining MD degree and first spaceflight: Morukov (1999 to 2000)

• Most number of scientific papers written: Taylor Wang (over 200 papers)

• Most number of scientific papers written among career NASA astronauts: J. Phillips (156 papers)

• Shortest time between obtaining MD degree and first spaceflight among NASA career astronauts: Parazynski (1989 to 1994)

• Most number of books written (co-author): Aldrin (8 books, as of May 2013)

• Most number of children's books written (co-author): Ride (7 books)

• Astronaut PhD with most spacewalking time: Grunsfeld (8 spacewalks, totaling 58 hours and 30 minutes)

• Astronaut MD with most spacewalking time: Parazynski (7 spacewalks, totaling 47 hours and 5 minutes)

• Astronaut MD/PhD with most spacewalking time: Barry (4 spacewalks, totaling 25 hours and 49 minutes)

• Number of astronaut PhDs with spacewalking time: 47

• Most frequent type of degree among astronaut PhD/spacewalkers: engineering-related PhDs

• Number of moonwalkers with PhD (or ScD) degrees: 3 out of 12 (Aldrin, Mitchell, Schmitt)

• Number of non-moonwalking moon travelers with PhD (or ScD) degrees: 0 out of 12 (None)

• Number of moon travelers with MD degrees (moonwalkers and non-moonwalkers): 0 out of 24 (None)

• First astronaut with doctorate to do a spacewalk: Aldrin (Gemini XII)

• First astronaut MD to do a spacewalk: Kerwin (Skylab II)

• First astronaut MD/PhD to do a spacewalk: Barry (STS-72)

• First (and only) veterinarian to do a spacewalk: Linnehan (STS-109)

• First spacewalk from a Space Shuttle: Musgrave (medical doctor, STS-6)

• Most Space Shuttle flights by an astronaut PhD: 7 (Chang-Díaz)

• Most Space Shuttle flights by an astronaut MD: 6 (Musgrave - includes all five shuttle orbiters)

• Most Space Shuttle flights by an astronaut MD/PhD: 3 (Barry)

• First astronaut with doctorate to do a repeat flight into space: Aldrin (Gemini XII and Apollo XI)

• First astronaut PhD to do a repeat flight into space on a Space Shuttle: Ride (STS-7 and STS-41G)

• First astronaut MD to do a repeat flight into space: Tie - Thagard (STS-7 and STS-51B) and W. Thornton (STS-8 and STS-51B)

• First astronaut MD/PhD to do a repeat flight into space: Linenger (STS-64 and STS-81)

• First astronaut with a doctorate to do a spacewalk or moonwalk on two missions: Aldrin (Gemini XII and Apollo XI)

• First astronaut MD to do a spacewalk on two missions: Musgrave (STS-6 and STS-61)

• First (and only) astronaut MD/PhD to do a spacewalk on two missions: Barry (STS-72 and STS-105)

• First astronaut PhD to do a spacewalk on a Space Shuttle mission: Nelson (STS-41C)

• First astronaut PhD to do a spacewalk on two Space Shuttle missions: van Hoften (STS-41C and STS-51I)

• First spaceflight with two astronaut PhDs doing a spacewalk on a second mission: STS-61 (Hoffman and K. Thornton)

• First (and only) astronaut PhD to serve as commander of a Space Shuttle mission (and first astronaut PhD to command a NASA mission overall): Scott Jay "Doc" Horowitz, STS-105.