Space station astronaut, commander Chris Hadfield announces retirement

HOUSTON, June 11 (UPI) -- Chris Hadfield, the Canadian astronaut who captivated the world with photos and videos on social media from the International Space Station, says he's retiring.

Hadfield, 53, said he is fulfilling a promise he made to his wife to move back to Canada after 30 years in the United States.

Hadfield, who has lived in Texas since he became a fighter pilot in the late-1980s and since his assignment to the NASA Johnson Space Center in Houston by the Canadian Space Agency, will retire in July and return to his native Ontario.

"I've had such an interesting career and after 35 years it's time to step down," Hadfield was quoted as saying by the Canadian Broadcasting Corp. "I'm the last astronaut of my class that's still around."

While in space as commander of the International Space Station, Hadfield garnered 1 million Twitter followers as he tweeted about his life on the orbiting laboratory, sharing striking images of the Earth.

In May, his zero-gravity rendition of the David Bowie song "Space Oddity" went viral on YouTube.

"Chris Hadfield has inspired all Canadians, especially our next generation of scientists and engineers," Chris Alexander, Canadian parliamentary secretary for defense, said in a statement.

"His exceptional career achievements make him a true Canadian hero and icon."