Folks, I'm pretty sure that's an #ApeInSpace aboard the @Space_Station. pic.twitter.com/0ht6ilXhxK
— Captain Mark Kelly (@CaptMarkKelly) February 22, 2016
Twins have a tendency of being pranksters—sharing the fun with their lifelong partner in crime. One time, these shenanigans reached as far as 250 miles above the Earth, when a gorilla was seen floating around the International Space Station. The stunt was devised by astronauts Mark and Scott Kelly, the only siblings—and identical twins— to have both flown in space.
In 2016, a couple of months before his retirement, Scott was set to spend his 52nd birthday in space. To celebrate, Mark, who had retired from NASA's astronaut corps five years prior, wanted to send his brother something special. “I was on the phone with my brother one day, and he said, ‘Hey, I'm sending you a gorilla suit,'” Scott Kelly recalled in an interview with People. “And I said, ‘Why?' And he goes, ‘Because there's never been a gorilla in space before.'”
While it has been reported that the gorilla suit was “smuggled,” the rest of the ISS crew did, in fact, know about it. With the help of their fellow astronauts, Mark arranged for the suit to be sent from Earth. After its arrival, Scott put it on, and captured a very funny video of him coming out of a stowage bag and chasing astronaut Tim Peake to the Benny Hill theme, rounding out the hilarious scene. “That's all staged. That's why he's floating around, swimming in air, we wanted it to look funny,” Scott said.
Both brothers later posted about their stunt on social media. “Folks, I'm pretty sure that's an #ApeInSpace aboard the @Space_Station,” wrote Mark on X, while Scott offered a more heartfelt explanation. “Needed a little humor to lighten up a #YearInSpace. Go big, or go home. I think I'll do both,” Scott said.
The moment was so memorable that NASA chronicled it in a post commemorating the way astronauts have celebrated their birthday in space, describing the bit as “some mild-mannered shenanigans.” The astronaut also shot an educational video about what happens when you cry in space, also wearing the suit.
Although both brothers hung up their space suits long ago, their careers are far from over. Mark Kelly has served as a United States senator from Arizona since 2020, as well as authoring children's books, while Scott published a memoir in 2017 and is an ambassador for the UNITED24 project, which raises money for the Ukrainian war efforts. To stay up to date with the former astronaut brothers, follow Mark Kelly and Scott Kelly on Instagram.
In 2016, Scott Kelly floated around the International Space Station in a gorilla suit.
Folks, I'm pretty sure that's an #ApeInSpace aboard the @Space_Station. pic.twitter.com/0ht6ilXhxK
— Captain Mark Kelly (@CaptMarkKelly) February 22, 2016
The stunt was devised alongside his brother, former astronaut Mark Kelly, in celebration of his birthday and his last months in space.
Needed a little humor to lighten up a #YearInSpace. Go big, or go home. I think I'll do both. #SpaceApehttps://t.co/Ift8VdDR4C
— Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) February 23, 2016
The astronaut also shot an educational video about what happens when you cry in space, also wearing the suit.
What happens when you cry in space? #SpaceGorilla explains. What else do you want to know about? Join me on @Reddit now! #AskMeAnything pic.twitter.com/ZQrmjg89zU
— Scott Kelly (@StationCDRKelly) October 16, 2017
Sources: A NASA Astronaut Once Wore a Gorilla Suit Aboard ISS?; Astronaut Scott Kelly Reveals Real Story Behind Video of Him in Gorilla Suit Aboard Space Station; Space Station 20th: Celebrating Birthdays on ISS
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