Welcome Home! PM Modi greets Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore
NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore returned to Earth after a nine-month stay aboard the International Space Station (ISS). Their SpaceX Dragon spacecraft undocked on Wednesday and splashed down off Florida’s coast at 5:57 pm EDT (3:30 am IST). Astronauts Nick Hague and Roscosmos cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov joined them on the return journey.
Prime Minister Narendra Modi welcomed Sunita Williams, calling her return a proud moment. ISRO hailed her safe return as a remarkable achievement and expressed interest in utilizing her expertise in space exploration.
Williams and Wilmore originally planned to stay for a week but remained stranded after arriving in June last year. Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft transported them to the ISS, but technical issues delayed their return.
Who is Sunita Williams?
Sunita Williams, known for her record-breaking space missions, was born in Euclid, Ohio. Her father, Deepak Pandya, is a Mumbai-born Indian-American neuroanatomist, and her mother, Ursuline Bonnie (Zalokar) Pandya, is Slovene-American.
Williams considers Needham, Massachusetts, her hometown. She and her husband, Michael, enjoy outdoor activities, working on cars and planes, and spending time with their dogs.
ISRO praised Williams’ contributions and acknowledged her expertise in space exploration. The agency emphasized the importance of international collaboration in advancing space research.
