Jonny Kim has built a legendary career defined by extraordinary resilience, public service, and elite multi-disciplinary achievements as a decorated U.S. Navy SEAL, Harvard-trained physician, and NASA astronaut... Born in Los Angeles in 1984 to Korean American immigrant parents, he enlisted in the U.S. Navy after high school in 2002. He became a Navy SEAL and served as a medic, sniper, navigator and point man during more than 100 combat operations. His decorations include the Silver Star and Bronze Star Medal with Combat “V.” Kim later became a commissioned naval officer, earned a mathematics degree from the University of San Diego and graduated from Harvard Medical School. He completed a medical internship at Massachusetts General Hospital and Brigham and Women’s Hospital, then became both a naval flight surgeon and naval aviator. NASA selected him for its astronaut corps in 2017. His training covered spacecraft systems, robotics, T-38 jets, survival, geology, spacewalk preparation and Russian. On April 8, 2025, he launched aboard Soyuz MS-27 for his first trip to the International Space Station. During 245 days in space, he completed 3,920 orbits and traveled nearly 104 million miles while working on research involving medicine, robotics and other technologies. After returning to Earth on December 9, 2025, Kim eventually chose another chapter. In August 2026, NASA announced that he was leaving the agency after nearly a decade to continue serving as a Navy lieutenant commander and return to active duty within naval aviation training. #archaeohistories