The sixth season of the American television sitcom The Big Bang Theory aired on CBS from September 27, 2012 to May 16, 2013.

This success has been attributed to the sitcom's exposure in syndication, its late 2010 move to a new time-slot, and the influence of showrunner Steven Molaro (who took over from Bill Prady) on the characters' storylines.

Mark Cendrowski was nominated for the Directors Guild of America Award for Outstanding Directing – Comedy Series for the season premiere "The Date Night Variable".

Thanks to technical consulting from Astronaut Mike Massimino, who also plays himself on the show, the production crew was able to put together sets that realistically depict the Soyuz capsule and the ISS.

Meanwhile, Raj's Yorkshire Terrier goes missing under Howard and Bernadette's care, causing tension until she's found safe.

In regards to sending the Howard Wolowitz character into space, June Thomas of Slate wrote that "The Big Bang Theory's creators deserve praise for their willingness to shake things up.

[54] Jesse Schedeen of IGN criticized the storylines, writing that "The entire episode was pretty much predicated on two jokes ...