Sunita Williams' third space mission called off due to technical glitch: All you need to know

Sunita Williams flew to space in 2006 and 2012 and has spent a total of 322 days in space, according to NASA.

Sunita Williams' third trip to space has been postponed as the launch of the Boeing Starline has been scrubbed due to a technical glitch. No new date has been announced for the launch.

Standing down on tonight’s attempt to launch #Starliner. As I’ve said before, @NASA’s first priority is safety. We go when we’re ready. https://t.co/KIasomZG66

— Bill Nelson (@SenBillNelson) May 7, 2024

Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams was all set to fly back into space again on May 7 on a new spacecraft Boeing Starliner.

Ahead of the mission, Williams said she is “a bit nervous but no jitters” about flying in a new spacecraft, as per an NDTV report.

She has travelled to space twice in her career, beginning in 1998.

Childhood and career milestones

The 59-year-old astronaut was born to Deepak Pandya and Bonnie Pandya on September 19, 1965. Her father immigrated from the Mehsana district in Gujarat to become a neuroanatomist in the US, later marrying Williams’ Slovenian mother Bonnie.

This will be Williams' third mission. She flew to space in 2006 and 2012, and spent a total of 322 days in space, according to NASA. Williams also held the record for the maximum spacewalk time by a female astronaut, spending 50 hours and 40 minutes in 7 outings. The record is now held by Peggy Whitson with 10 spacewalks.

She was chosen to be an astronaut in 1998 and later became a part of a select group of astronauts for NASA’s new commercial crew program, according to an NDTV report. Williams retired from the US Navy and has a physical science degree from the US Naval Academy and a master's degree from Florida Institute of Technology.

Mission plan

Williams and Wilmore are scheduled to spend 8 days on the ISS and will return to Earth on May 15. During their time on ISS, the astronauts are expected to carry out several tests. The aircraft will make a land-based touchdown, instead of splashing down in the sea, according to a report by Times of India.

Boeing’s test

The mission will take approximately 26 hours to take Williams and Wilmore to ISS, during which the two astronauts will conduct tests to check the preparedness of the spacecraft under the new commercial program for certification, the report said. The successful completion of the mission will make the US aircraft maker the second private firm that can provide crew transportation to and from ISS, the report added. Boeing has 6 planned missions over the next six years and the US space agency intends to use Starliner as well as SpaceX’s Dragon for transportation purposes, the TOI report further said.