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Kim will become the second Torero to journey to the International Space Station

Jonathan "Jonny" Kim 12' (BA) will serve as flight engineer and crew member of the upcoming Expedition 72/73 mission, the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) announced Wednesday. It will be Kim's first mission to the International Space Station (ISS).

"I'm incredibly honored to represent NASA in our continued commitment to international collaboration and scientific discovery," Kim wrote on his social media accounts.

Kim is set to launch on the Roscosmos Soyuz MS-27 spacecraft in March 2025. He will be accompanied by Russian cosmonauts Sergey Ryzhikov and Alexey Zubritsky. They are scheduled to spend about eight months on the ISS. According to NASA, Kim will conduct scientific investigations and technology demonstrations to help prepare the crew for future space missions and provide benefits to people on Earth.

"I learned so many skills from the military, but I learned soft skills from my time at USD," Kim said for a story in the Spring 2021 issue of USD Magazine. "I learned how to communicate and how to appreciate other perspectives. I learned the scientific method, which can be applied to any problem in life. Having the evidence shows you the answer and having the humility to accept that you might be wrong. Those are principles to academia, but they're also principles to being a good human being."

Kim, who earned his bachelor's degree in Mathematics from USD, is a member of NASA's 2017 class that also includes USD alumnus Matthew Dominick '05 (BS/BA). Dominick is currently aboard the ISSas commander of NASA's SpaceX Crew-8 mission.

- USD News Center