Mike Massimino went through grueling tests to become an astronaut.  On Thursday, he'll give Hollywood a try.

Massimino will guest-star on the hit CBS sitcom "The Big Bang Theory" on Thursday night.  The episode airs at 8 p.m. on Local 6.

[Related: Watch full episodes of "Big Bang"]

According to CBS, he will play himself in the episode entitled "The Friendship Contraction."  Massimino will talk with the character Howard Holowitz about traveling to the International Space Station and picking an astronaut nickname.

Massimino was a part of STS-125 -- NASA's fifth and final flight to the Hubble Space Telescope -- in May 2009.  He has logged more than 571 hours in space and more than 30 hours of spacewalking, according to NASA's biography page.

Massimino is also credited with sending the first tweet from space.  @Astro_Mike tweeted the following during STS-125: "From orbit: Launch was awesome!! I am feeling great, working hard, & enjoying the magnificent views, the adventure of a lifetime has begun!"