USA

Jeanette Epps

(Jeanette Jo Epps)

(Nov 3, 1970)

Astronaut 613

Astronaut of the USA 364

Woman-astronaut 75

Spaceflights 1

Spaceflights

On May 30, 2025, NASA astronaut Jeanette Epps concluded her career with the agency after nearly 16 years of service. Most recently, Epps served as a mission specialist on NASA’s SpaceX Crew-8 mission; she spent 235 days in space (including 232 days aboard the International Space Station), participating in hundreds of scientific experiments during Expeditions 71 and 72.

Epps was selected for the NASA astronaut corps in 2009 (as part of the 20th class). In addition to her spaceflight experience, she served as a lead Capsule Communicator (CAPCOM) at NASA’s Mission Control Center and acted as a crew support astronaut for two ISS expeditions.

Epps also participated in the NEEMO mission (NASA’s Extreme Environment Mission Operations) off the coast of Florida, conducted geological research in Hawaii, and served on the Generic Joint Operations Panel, which focused on improving crew efficiency aboard the space station.

A native of Syracuse, New York, she earned a bachelor’s degree in physics from Le Moyne College (Syracuse), as well as master’s and doctoral degrees in aerospace engineering from the University of Maryland (College Park). During her graduate studies, she was a NASA fellow and published a number of papers in scientific journals and conference proceedings detailing her research findings.