For the first 21 years of human spaceflight, no American spent the Fourth of July in space. This changed in 1982 when the 35th U.S. human spaceflight crew celebrated Independence Day in orbit and returned to a presidential welcome. It took another decade for more Americans to be in space on July 4. As space missions increased, celebrating the holiday in orbit became an annual event, often with international crew members. By 2024, 73 Americans had celebrated Independence Day in space, with eight doing so twice.