HE’S BACK, BABY! Don Pettit Lands on Earth Just in Time to Celebrate His 70th Birthday Like a Space Boss 🚀🎉

He’s Back, Baby! Don Pettit Lands On Earth Just In Time To Celebrate His 70th Birthday Like A Space Boss (IMG SOURCE: nasa.gov)

Move over, Tom Cruise — NASA’s real-life action hero just landed a seven-month mission in space and didn’t even break a sweat (well, maybe a little).

Don Pettit, the legendary astronaut-slash-space-photographer, just pulled off the ultimate birthday flex — crashing back to Earth on his 70th birthday after orbiting our big blue ball 3,500+ times. That’s right. While most folks are blowing out candles, Don’s over here re-entering the atmosphere like a sci-fi rockstar.

He touched down Sunday morning in Kazakhstan with his Russian crewmates Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner like it was just another workday. After 220 days aboard the ISS, Pettit’s now the oldest active-duty American astronaut to complete a long-duration mission. Mic drop. 🌍🔥

Welcome home! @Astro_Pettit and his cosmonaut crewmates, Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner, completed their mission after seven months on the @Space_Station. https://t.co/FTa8rWrAgj pic.twitter.com/iQVJtHzTNp

— NASA (@NASA) April 20, 2025

And yes — he celebrated in style. Think less “party hats and cake,” more “Soyuz capsule, G-forces, and mission control applause.” Iconic.

Of course, no Pettit mission is complete without some jaw-dropping space snaps. The guy’s basically the Ansel Adams of zero gravity. His Instagram-worthy pics from the ISS Cupola had fans (and probably aliens) doing double-takes.

Oh, and get this — dude has now clocked 590+ days in space across four missions. That’s more time than some people spend at their jobs. Meanwhile, we’re here still trying to finish one season of “The Crown.”

NASA says he’s doing great post-landing, even if he looked a little wobbly next to his younger crewmates. Give the man a break — he just fell from space. At 70. Legend status: achieved.

So, happy freakin’ birthday, Don. You literally came back to Earth just to party with gravity.