Captain Barry “Butch” E. Wilmore has had a distinguished career in the US Navy, the US Air Force, and, most recently, NASA. He is a veteran of three spaceflights, totaling 464 days in space and 32 hours of spacewalks. As a Christian, Captain Wilmore uses his passion for astronomy to share the message of God’s Word.

While serving as a naval officer and pilot, Captain Wilmore completed four operational deployments. He flew in 21 combat missions over Iraq and Bosnia in Operations Desert Storm, Desert Shield, and Southern Watch. In total, he accumulated more than 8,000 flight hours and 663 carrier landings. He has also served on exchange as a flight test instructor at the US Air Force Test Pilot School.

In addition to a successful career in the US Armed Forces, Captain Wilmore was selected as an astronaut in July 2000. After two years of training, he traveled to NASA’s Kennedy Space Center, where he supported launch and landing operations. Captain Wilmore completed his first space flight aboard STS-129 in 2009, logging approximately 11 days in space. Captain Wilmore served as Flight Engineer aboard the International Space Station (ISS) before assuming command in November 2014.

On June 5, 2024, Captain Wilmore and crewmate Suni Williams launched aboard the Boeing Starliner spacecraft for its first crewed flight. Starliner docked at the ISS after over a day in space, but the capsule’s thrusters malfunctioned during the process. Months of testing followed, and NASA determined it was not safe to return the two astronauts aboard Starliner. What was meant to be an eight-day mission turned into nine long months in space. Captain Wilmore and Williams finally returned to earth aboard the SpaceX Dragon spacecraft on March 12, 2025.

Captain Wilmore retired from NASA on August 6, 2025, after an illustrious career spanning 25 years. He feels called to use his experiences as an astronaut to share the good news of God’s Word. He joined fellow astronauts Colonel Jeffrey Williams and General Charlie Duke in speaking at the Astronaut Encounter, where the three shared their personal testimonies and incredible stories.

Captain Wilmore has earned many distinctions and honors, including the Legion of Merit, the Defense Superior Service Medal, the Defense Meritorious Service Medal, and many others.

He lives in Houston, Texas, with his wife Deanna. They have two daughters. Captain Wilmore serves as an elder at Providence Baptist Church in Pasadena.

Education

• BS, MS in Electrical Engineering from Tennessee Technological University
• MS in Aviation Systems from the University of Tennessee