Captain Scott Kelly

A groundbreaking figure in the history of American space exploration, Captain Scott Kelly shares invaluable insights on leadership and teamwork, resilience, and embracing failure to achieve personal and professional goals.

I believe that building the International Space Station is the hardest thing we’ve ever done—and if we can do this, we can do anything…. We can choose to do the hard things. And if we do that, then the sky is definitely not the limit. Captain Scott Kelly

Holding the record for the single longest mission of an American astronaut in space, Captain Scott Kelly draws from his epic life journey to help individuals and organizations redefine and reach beyond their limits. With stories from his rough-and-tumble childhood in New Jersey as the son of two police officers, Scott Kelly shares how despite starting out life as a poor student, he was able to become a U.S. Navy fighter pilot flying the F-14 Tomcat, and then a test pilot, and finally a NASA astronaut.

When he and his twin brother, Mark, were selected to become astronaut candidates in April of 1996, they were the first relatives ever selected. After completing his training, Scott became the first American in his class of 44 prospective astronauts assigned to a space flight as the pilot of STS-103, an emergency repair mission to the Hubble Space telescope in 1999. On his second mission, Scott was assigned to command space shuttle mission STS-118, a rare feat given that most shuttle commanders are assigned after two flights as a pilot.

Scott recounts the challenges that he and his crew faced on his four missions to space and shares the traits that helped him overcome those obstacles. With humor and visual storytelling, he describes the effects of isolation, the physical impact on the body and the psychological pressures of living in a confined space. He vividly describes the many dangers—from the constant risk of collision with space debris to the potential for depressurization, fire, or system failures — any of which could have meant catastrophe. He shows how preparation, attention to detail and teamwork can make the difference between life and death—success and failure for a team

Scott Kelly is the author of two New York Times bestsellers, including his memoir, Endurance: A Year in Space, A Lifetime of Discovery, and the companion collection of images published as Infinite Wonder: An Astronaut's Photographs from a Year in Space. He is also author of advice book Ready for Launch: An Astronaut’s Lessons for Success on Earth, and two children’s books, My Journey to the Stars and Goodnight, Astronaut.

Scott Kelly’s story is featured in the award-winning TIME and PBS documentaries A Year in Space and in the theatrical release from Universal Pictures of the 2021 documentary The Wonderful: Stories from the Space Station. In 2021, he was inducted into the U.S. Astronaut Hall of Fame at the Kennedy Space Center in Florida.

Books & Movies

Interested in placing an order for books or videos by this speaker for your event? Please contact us for more information or to process your order.

Order