NASA astronauts parody sci-fi movies (pictures)

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NASA explores the Final Frontier

In the latest promotional poster from NASA, astronauts and cosmonauts headed to the International Space Station for their next mission are dressed as Jedi masters. But it's not the first time space scientists have gone sci-fi for a NASA promo shot.

Here, the crew of NASA Expedition 21 is dressed in"Star Trek: The Next Generation" uniforms. The poster is written in anoriginal "Star Trek" series typeface with the Enterprise NX-01 in thebackground. And yes, there are even two Red Shirts.

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Don't panic! It's just NASA having fun

Since 42 is "the answer to the ultimate questionof life, the universe and everything" in "The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy," the astronauts of Expedition 42 do their best impressions ofthe cast. Robonaut even appears as Marvin the Paranoid Android.

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More than meets the sky

While no Autobots were around on the InternationalSpace Station, that didn't stop the astronauts from celebrating"Transformers" in this parody poster for Expedition 31. Russiancosmonauts Oleg Kononenko, Gennady Padalka and Sergei Revin, NASA astronauts DonPettit and Joseph M. Acaba and ESA astronaut André Kuipers would make theDecepticons think twice about attacking Earth.

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Robonaut makes a great Maria

Astronauts Scott Kelly, Samantha Cristoforetti, Mikhail Korniyenko, Terry Virts, Gennadi Padalka andAnton Shkaplerov, along with Robonaut, pay tribute to Fritz Lang’s 1927silent sci-fi classic "Metropolis."

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From electronic arena to space itself

The international crew from Expedition 29 shows off its best"Tron" gaming stance.

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Astronauts are strong with the Force

NASA astronauts Kjell Lindgren and Scott Kelly,Russian cosmonauts Sergei Volkov, Oleg Kononenko and Mikhail Kornienko andJapan's Kimiya Yui pose as Jedi masters complete with their own lightsabers inthis "Star Wars"-themed poster for Expedition 45.

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Whoa! Astronauts free their minds

The team from Expedition 16 looks ready to fight inthis parody poster of "The Matrix." Swapping their usualastronaut spacesuits for black leather and sunglasses are Russian cosmonaut YuriMalenchenko, NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, Malaysian spaceflight participantSheikh Muszaphar Shukor, ESA astronaut Léopold Eyharts andNASA astronauts Garrett Reisman and Dan Tani. They don't need to take the blue pill to see things usEarth-bound folks never get to experience.

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NASA gets the job done

In honor of director QuentinTarantino's indie crime classic "Reservoir Dogs," the astronautsfrom Expedition 23 make for aformidable team. We'd plan a heist with Russian cosmonaut Mikhail Kornienko,NASA astronaut Tracy Caldwell Dyson, Russian cosmonaut Alexander Skvortsov,Russian cosmonaut Oleg Kotov, NASA astronaut T.J. Creamer and Japan AerospaceExploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi, if they weren't so busy inspace.

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Which astronaut is the walrus?

Not all NASA parody posters are geeky. In thiscase, we see the crew from Expedition 26 showing off its appreciation of the Beatles. Astronaut Catherine Coleman plays the part of a barefoot Paul McCartney in this tribute to the "Abbey Road" album cover. And the usual crossing stripes are replaced with the Roman numerals forExpedition 26.

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Ahoy astronauts!

CosmonautsOleg Kononenko, Anatoly Ivanishin and Anton Shkaplerov, NASA astronauts Dan Burbank andDon Pettit and ESA astronaut André Kuipers are transformed into piratescomplete with hats, eyeliner, eye patches and even a pet monkey in this "Pirates of the Caribbean" homage for Expedition 30.