Williams, Sunita Lyn (1965-…), is a United States astronaut known for her extensive career in space. In 2012, Williams set the record for the most total time spent in extravehicular activity (EVA) by a woman, at 50 hours 40 minutes. She held the record until American astronaut Peggy Whitson broke it in 2017. Participating in extravehicular activity, sometimes called spacewalking, involves working outside a spacecraft in a spacesuit. In 2007, Williams set the record for most consecutive days in space by a woman, at 195. She held that record until the Italian astronaut Samantha Cristoforetti broke it in 2015. Williams set both of her records while working aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Williams was selected to be an astronaut by the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) in 1998. At the end of 2006, she flew aboard the space shuttle Discovery to the ISS, where she stayed for over six months. There, she took part in the further construction of the station, making four separate spacewalks. She returned to the ISS in 2012, aboard a Russian Soyuz capsule. During her second stay on the ISS, Williams performed three more spacewalks to upgrade the station’s electrical system and to repair a damaged radiator. She also served as the station’s commander.
Sunita Lyn Pandya was born on Sept. 19, 1965, in Euclid, Ohio, near Cleveland. She grew up in Needham, Massachusetts, near Boston. She earned a B.S. degree in physical science from the U.S. Naval Academy in Annapolis, Maryland, in 1987. She became a Navy aviator in 1989, serving as a helicopter pilot in the Persian Gulf War of 1991. In 1993, Williams attended the Naval Test Pilot School, becoming an instructor in 1995. That year, she earned an M.S. degree in engineering management from the Florida Institute of Technology. She married Michael J. Williams, a law enforcement officer, in 1989.
