NASA astronaut Sunita Williams has announced her plans to visit India soon, expressing her excitement about meeting ISRO’s space team and the upcoming Indian astronauts who will be part of an ISRO mission.
Speaking at the NASA SpaceX Crew-9 Post-Flight News Conference, Williams shared how breathtaking India looked from space, particularly the Himalayas.
🗣️ Sunita Williams on Her India Visit:
“I hope and I think for sure I’m going to be going back to my father’s home country and visiting with people and getting excited about the Indian astronauts who’s going up on the ISRO mission coming up.”
Williams’ father, Deepak Pandya, hails from Gujarat, while her mother, Ursuline Bonnie Pandya, has Slovenian-American roots.
Excitement for ISRO and India’s Space Efforts
Williams praised India’s progress in space exploration, calling it a fellow democracy making strides in the sector. She expressed her eagerness to share her experiences with ISRO scientists.
🗣️ Williams on ISRO’s Growth:
“I hope I can meet up at some point in time and we can share our experiences with as many people in India as possible because it’s a great country, another wonderful democracy that’s trying to put its foot in the space of countries and I would love to be part of that and help them along.”
When asked if she would bring her Crew-9 team along, she enthusiastically agreed and joked about preparing them for spicy Indian food.
“Absolutely! You might stick out a little bit but that’s okay- we’ll get you all primed with some spicy food, we’ll be good.”
India’s Beauty from Space
Williams described how India’s geography and diversity stood out from space.
- The Himalayas appeared as an incredible “ripple effect” of colliding tectonic plates.
- India’s coastline was marked by visible fishing fleets off Gujarat and Mumbai.
- At night, India’s landscape transformed into a vast network of lights, with major cities shining the brightest.
🗣️ Williams on India’s Night View from Space:
“I think the impression I had was it was just like this network of lights from the bigger cities going down through the smaller cities. [It was] just incredible to look at night, as well as during the day. Highlighted of course by the Himalayas which is just incredible as a forefront going down into India.”
Crew-9 Mission and Extended Stay in Space
Williams and her NASA Crew-9 teammates – Nick Hague, Butch Wilmore, and Russian cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov – returned to Earth on March 19 after spending over nine months in space due to delays caused by Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft issues.
Initially, she and Butch Wilmore were scheduled for just a one-week mission, but technical problems extended their stay, as reported by CNN.
ISRO Keen on Collaborating with Williams
During her extended space stay, ISRO expressed interest in working with Williams for future space missions.
ISRO stated:
“When Bharat, under the leadership of Hon’ble PM Modi ji, is working towards making India a developed country, we wish to utilize your expertise in space exploration.”
Williams’ upcoming visit to India is expected to foster stronger ties between NASA and ISRO, especially as India gears up for future space missions. 🚀