The astronaut who traded the space shuttle for the U.S. Senate

History · Published 19 October 2026 Swipe more like this →

In short: From flying 39 combat missions in the Persian Gulf to navigating the halls of Congress, Mark Kelly’s life reads like a screenplay. His journey involves identical twin astronauts, a landmark NASA study, and a political ascent that flipped a long-held Republican stronghold.

Born in 1964, Mark Kelly’s early life was defined by service and science. The son of two police officers, he graduated from the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy in 1986 and later became a naval aviator. His military career included 39 combat missions during the Persian Gulf War and over 5,000 flight hours across more than 50 different aircraft. Before his naval service, he worked at a Dairy Queen and volunteered for his local first-aid squad. Additionally, he completed an aeronautical engineering master's at the U.S. the U.S. Naval Postgraduate School during 1994.

In 1996, NASA selected both Mark and his identical twin, Scott, for astronaut training. While they initially hoped to be the first siblings in space at the same time, launch delays meant their paths diverged. Instead, NASA utilized the twins for a landmark study, comparing Scott’s bodily functions during his long-duration stay on the ISS with Mark’s functions on Earth.

Mark’s career transitioned from the cockpit to the Senate following profound personal tragedy. In January 2011, his wife, Congresswoman Gabby Giffords, was severely wounded in an assassination attempt. Kelly retired from both NASA and the Navy in October 2011 to support her recovery. This period also saw the couple become prominent activists for gun control.

In 2020, Kelly won a special election for the U.S. Senate in Arizona, a seat held by Republicans since 1968. His victory, a two-point margin, marked a significant shift in the state's political landscape. By 2024, his profile was so significant that he appeared on Kamala Harris’s shortlist for running mate. His first mission as pilot of the Endeavour took place on the STS-108 mission. He also served as mission commander on two other flights to the International Space Station. The couple later established a nonprofit political action committee called Americans for Responsible Solutions. This organization focused on promoting measures such as universal background checks. He secured a full six-year term in the 2022 elections with a five-point victory. This political rise followed his initial win in a special election triggered by the passing of John McCain.

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