News Desk
WASHINGTON — For Sunita Williams, spacewalking has always been part of the job. But this time, as she floated outside the International Space Station (ISS) on Thursday, there was something different—she was making history.
With a total of 62 hours and 6 minutes spent walking in the vacuum of space, Williams, an Indian-origin astronaut, has now logged more extravehicular time than any woman before her. The milestone comes under extraordinary circumstances: Williams and her crewmate, Butch Wilmore, have been stranded aboard the ISS since June 2024 due to technical issues with their Boeing Starliner spacecraft.
Despite the uncertainty surrounding their return, the two astronauts suited up and stepped outside the station to remove degraded radio hardware and collect samples that could reveal whether microorganisms exist on the ISS’s exterior. The spacewalk, which lasted 5 hours and 26 minutes, was Williams’ ninth—an experience she described in past missions as “like being in a dream.”
For Williams, who once said she carried her father’s Indian roots with her to space, this mission has become more than just a record-breaking achievement. It is a testament to resilience—one more step forward, even when home feels impossibly far away.
