On Wednesday, Indian-American astronaut Sunita “Suni” Williams embarked on her third extraordinary space mission, piloting a spacecraft from the Cape Canaveral Space Station in Florida. Accompanying her on this historic journey was fellow NASA astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore, as they set course for the International Space Station (ISS). This test flight, known as the Crew Flight Test, has been highly anticipated and has faced multiple delays.
Before liftoff, Sunita’s mother, Bonnie Pandya, shared her daughter’s excitement and high spirits with NBC News. NASA confirmed that the launch commenced successfully at 10:52 am ET, with Boeing’s Starliner lifting off atop a ULA Launch Atlas V rocket. The mission aims to certify the spacecraft for routine space travel to and from the ISS, a service currently provided by Elon Musk’s SpaceX.
Upon their safe arrival at the space station, Williams and Wilmore will join the Expedition 71 crew, which includes astronauts Michael Barratt, Matt Dominick, Tracy C Dyson, and Jeanette Epps, along with Roscosmos cosmonauts Nikolai Chub, Alexander Grebenkin, and Oleg Kononenko.
Sunita Williams, 58, has made history as the first female astronaut to fly on the inaugural flight of a crewed spacecraft. This mission marks her third journey into space, following her previous expeditions in 2006 and 2012. Her achievements are particularly significant considering that she holds a world record for women with four spacewalks during her first mission.
Boeing and SpaceX received funding from NASA’s Commercial Crew program in 2014 to develop spacecraft capable of carrying astronauts to the ISS. Boeing received over USD 4 billion in federal funds to develop the Starliner, while SpaceX received about USD 2.6 billion. SpaceX’s Crew Dragon has already performed 12 crewed missions to the ISS since its first launch in 2020.
Sunita Williams, a Needham, Massachusetts native, earned a physical science degree from the US Naval Academy and a master’s in engineering management from the Florida Institute of Technology. She was selected as an astronaut by NASA in 1998 and has spent a total of 322 days in space across her three missions. Her impressive career also includes seven spacewalks, totaling over 50 hours of cumulative EVA time.
Barry Wilmore, 61, brings a wealth of experience to the mission, having logged 178 days in space and completed four spacewalks.
The successful launch of Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft marks a significant milestone for the United States’ space program. It brings the country closer to certifying the Starliner for routine astronaut missions to the ISS, reducing reliance on SpaceX and opening up new possibilities for space exploration.
