Sunita Williams: Sunita Williams is a famous Indian-American astronaut, former US Navy officer and one of the most experienced astronauts in history. Sunita Williams was born on September 19, 1965 in Euclid, Ohio, United States. Sunita Williams has been married to Michael J. Williams, a federal Marshal in Texas, for more than 20 years.
Sunita Williams Biography
| Full name | Sunita Lyn Williams |
| Name | Sunita Williams |
| Nickname | Suni |
| Gender | Female |
| Profession | Astronaut, Flight Engineer, Naval officer |
| Date of Birth | September 19, 1965 |
| Age (as of 2025) | 59 years |
| Birthplace | Euclid, Ohio, United States |
| Hometown | Needham, Massachusetts, USA |
| Zodiac sign | Virgo |
| Nationality | American |
Physical Status
| Height (approx.) | 5 feet 6 inches |
| Height (approx.) | 57 kg |
| Eye Colour | Brown |
| Hair Colour | Dark Brown |
Sunita Williams Family
| Father | Deepak Pandya |
| Mother | Bonnie Pandya |
| Brother | Jay Thomas |
| Sister | Dina Annad |
Personal Information
| Marital status | Married |
| Husband/Spouse | Michael J. Williams |
| Children | N/A |
Favourite Things and Hobbies
| Favourite sports | Marathon, Running and Triathlon |
| Favourite book | The Little Prince by Antoine de Saint- Exupery |
| Favourite food | Indian food, especially samosa and spicy dishes |
| Favourite pet | Dogs |
| Favourite | Music classic rock and Indian music |
| Hobbies | Running, Swimming, Biking and Flying |
Early Life and Education
Sunita Williams was born in Euclid, Ohio but considers Needhan, Massachusetts do be her hometown. Her father Deepak Pandya was an Indian American neuroanatomist from Mehsana district, Gujarat wine her mother, Ursuline Bonnie Pandya was a Slovene American. Her parents resided in Falmouth, Massachusetts. She is the youngest of three children.
Her brother Jay Thomas is 4 years older and her sister Dina Annad is 3 years older. Williams paternal family is from jhulasan in India whereas her maternal family is of Slovene descent. Williams has taken the Slovenia flag a samosa and Carniola sausage to space in celebration of her Indian and Slovenia heritage. Her nicknames are Suni in the United States and Soncka in Slovenia.
Williams graduated from Needhan High School in 1983. She received a bachelor of science degree in physical science from the United States Naval Academy 1987 and a Master of science degree in Engineering management from Florida Institute of technology in 1995.
| School | Needhan High School |
| College/University | United States Naval Academy |
| Educational qualification | Master of science in Engineering Management |
Sunita Williams Career
Military Career
Sunita Williams was commissioned an ensign in the U.S Navy in May 1987. After 6 month temporary assignment at the Naval coastal system command, she was designated a basic diving officer. He next reported to the Naval Aviator in July 1989. In September 1992, she was the officer in charge of an H-46 detachment sent to Miami, Florida for Hurricane Andrew relief operations aboard USS Sylvnia. In January 1993, Williams begin training at the U.S. Naval test pilot School. Se graduated in December and was assigned to the rotary wing aircraft test directorate as an H-46 project officer and V-22 chase pilot in the T-2 Later she was assigned as the squadron safety officer and flew test flights in the SH-60B/F, UH-1, AH-1W, SH- 2,VH-3,H-46, H-57.
In December 1995, she went back to the Naval test pilot School as an instructor in the rotary wing department and as the schools safety officer. Williams was deployed on Saipan in June 1998 when she was selected by NASA for the astronaut program. She has logged more than 3000 flight hours in more than 30 aircraft types. Williams retired from the Navy in 2017.
Career in NASA
Williams began her astronaut candidate training at the Johnson space Centre in August 1998.
STS-116
Sunita Williams was launched to the international space station (ISS) with STS-116 aboard space shuttle discovery on December 9, 2006 to join the expedition 14 crew. In April 2007, the Russian members of the rotated changing to expedition 15.
Expedition 14 and 15
After launch, Williams arrange to donate her ponytail to locks of love. Fellow astronaut Joan Higginbotham cut her hair abode the international space station and it was brought back to earth by the STS- 116 crew. Williams performed her first extra vehicular activity on the eighth day of the STS-116 mission. On January 31, February 4 and February 9, 2017 completed 3 space walks from the ISS with Michael Lopez Algeria. During one of these walks, a camera became unthread probably because the attaching device failed and flighted of to space before Williams could react.
In early March 2007, she received a tube of wasabi in a progress spacecraft resupply mission in response to her request for more spicy food.
On April 26, 2007, NASA decided to during Williams back to Earth on the STS-117 mission aboard Altnatis. Although she did not break the US single space flight record recently set by Lopez Algeria she did break the record for longest single space flight by a woman. Williams served as a mission especialist and returned to Earth on June 22, 2007, at the end of the STS- 117 mission. Poor weather at the Kennedy space Centre in Canaveral forced mission managers to skip 3 landing attempts their over 24 hours. The ultimately diverted Altnatis to EdWards Air force base in California, where the shuttle touched down at 3:49:00 p.m. EDT returning Williams home after 192 day is 10 space.
Marathon in space
On April 16, 2007, she ran the first marathon by any person in space. Williams was listed as an entrant for the 2007 Boston marathon, and completed the distance in 4 hours and 24 minutes. In 2008 Williams participated in the Boston marathon again.
Commercial Crew Program
In July 2015, NASA announced Williams as one of the first astronauts for us commercial spaceflights. She began working with Boeing and space x to train in their commercial crew vehicles, along with other chosen astronauts. In August 2018, she was assigned to the first operational mission flight to the international space station of Boeing CST-100 Starliner. On April 18, 2022, NASA said the cadre of Starliner astronauts included Barry Wilmore, Michael Fincke and Williams. On June 16, 2022, NASA said the Boeing Crew flight test (CFT) mission would be Crewed why will more and Williams.
The June 5, 2024, launch of straliner made Williams, it’s pilot the first woman to fly on a flight test of an orbital spacecraft. On 18 March 2005, bahut returned on space x Crew-9 (Crew 9 was launched in September 2024 weather to vacant seats to accommodate Williams and Wimore’s return). On August 24, 2024 she became among the top 30 and is expected to be among the top 12 in time in space duration when she returns into 2025.
In September 2024, Williams took command of the ISS for the second time in her career. Williams handed over command of the space station to Roscosmos cosmonaunt Aleksey Ovchinin during a ceremony on March 7, 2025.
Boeing Starline incident and return to Earth
In 2024, Sunita Williams returned to the ISS on the Boeing Crew flight test the first Crewed mission of the Boeing Starline. The mission was supposed to last eight days, but technical problems such as helium leaks and propulsion system malfunctions standed Williams and crewmate Butch Williams on the ISS for more than 9 months. She returned to earth with the other crew members of crew 9 landing Safely in the gulf of Mexico near Tallahassee, Florida on March 18, 2025.
Spacewalks
As of January 2025, Williams had made 9 spacewalks totalling 62 hours and 6 minutes, setting a total time record for a woman and ranking for overall on the list of most experienced spacewalkers.
Achievements
- Spacewalks: completed nine Spacewalks total in 62 hours and 6 minutes, holding the record for most Spacewalk hours by a woman until 2017.
- Time in Space: spent over 606 days in space as of her latest mission.
Latest News
Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore, NASA astronauts part of the Crew-9 mission, return to earth aboard spaceX’s dragon freedom on Tuesday after a 9 month over stay at the international Space station (ISS). Their presence in space and safe return cought global attention as the short mission was turned into a month long ordeal.
Some interesting facts about Sunita Williams
- She became the second female commander of the international Space station (ISS) during expedition 33 in 2012.
- Sunita held the record for the most Spacewalks (7) and the most Spacewalks time (50 hours 40 minutes) by a woman until 2017.
- Her father is from Gujarat, India and her mother is Slovenian descent.
- She carried a copy of the Bhagavad Gita, a small Ganesh idol, and samosa with her to space as attribute for her Indian roots.
- Secretly used residence bands “paddle in microgravity”.
- Before becoming an astronaut, she originally wanted to veterinarian.
Sunita Williams Net worth
Sunita Williams Net worth is estimated to be around $5 million.
FAQs
Who is Sunita Williams?
Sunita Williams is an American astronaut and former U.S. navy officer of Indian Slovenian descent. She is known for her space missions with NASA and holding records for spacewalks for women.
What is Sunita Williams full name?
Her full name is Sunita Lyn Williams.
When and where was Sunita Williams born?
She was born on September 19, 1965 in Euclid, Ohio, United States.
What is Sunita Williams religion?
She was raised in a Hindu-Christian household. Her father was Hindu and her mother was Christian.
What is the name of Sunita Williams’s husband?
Sunita Williams’s husband name is Michael J. Williams.
