KENNEDY SPACE CENTER, Fla. — After their long – and unintended – stay in space, NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore are finally on their way back home.
“Oh, my god, the dogs will be all over her! They love Suni,” said Bonnie Pandya, mother of Suni Williams. “We’re all planning parties for her; everyone wants to throw a party for her.”
The astronauts have been onboard the International Space Station since last year.
They took off from Florida’s Space Coast back in June as part of the first crewed mission for Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft.
At the time, they were supposed to spend just a week in space, but as it turned out, the whole mission took a little longer than expected – more than nine months in total.
“She’s getting back in time for my daughter’s high school graduation. I think she’s happy about that. everyone’s happy about that,” said Dina Anna Pandya, Williams’ sister.
Due to safety concerns, NASA opted not to use the capsule that was initially supposed to bring the astronauts back home and wait until another one was available for the trip back to Earth.
“I think a lot of people know about our situation, but I also am excited that people are paying attention and understanding a little bit more about science and space,” said Suni Williams while onboard the ISS.
The pair fit right in with the crew. Williams was even the station’s commander for three months.
She also broke the record for the most spacewalking ever by a woman – 62 hours and 6 minutes.
Just after midnight Tuesday, the two veteran astronauts finally undocked from the space station and made their way home.
“If there’s anyone who could have done that job, it was her and Butch,” said Dina Pandya. “That was an unusual circumstance. And they did it like so nicely and gracefully, and they took the bull by the horns and just made the best of it. I think it made a big impact.”
The crew is expected to splashdown off Florida’s west coast before 6 p.m. on Tuesday.
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