Indian-origin NASA astronaut Sunita Williams has retired from the US space agency with effect from December 27. Her retirement announced on January 21, 2026 marks the end of her distinguished 27-year career marked by three missions to the International Space Station (ISS), leadership roles in orbit and multiple human spaceflight records.
The 60-year-old astronaut, a former Navy captain, spent more than 27 years at NASA, logging 608 days in space over three station missions. She also set a record for the most spacewalking time by a woman: 62 hours during nine excursions.
Reflecting on her journey, Sunita Williams said, “Anyone who knows me knows that space is my absolute favourite place to be. It’s been an incredible honour to have served in the Astronaut Office and have had the opportunity to fly in space three times. I had an amazing 27-year career at NASA, and that is mainly because of all the wonderful love and support I’ve received from my colleagues.”
“The International Space Station, the people, the engineering, and the science are truly awe-inspiring and have made the next steps of exploration to the Moon and Mars possible. I hope the foundation we set has made these bold steps a little easier. I am super excited for NASA and its partner agencies as we take these next steps, and I can’t wait to watch the agency make history,” she further said.
Announcing her retirement, NASA said in a statement issued on January 20, “After 27 years of service, NASA astronaut Suni Williams retired from the agency, effective Dec. 27, 2025. Williams completed three missions aboard the International Space Station, setting numerous human spaceflight records throughout her career.”
The 60-year-old astronaut is currently touring India and on Tuesday participated in an interactive session titled ‘Eyes on the Stars, Feet on the Ground’ at the American Centre in New Delhi. Posters at the venue described her as ‘NASA Astronaut, Ret. and US Navy Captain, Ret.’
Suni Williams a trailblazer in human spaceflight: NASA Administrator
Williams spent over eight months aboard the ISS and returned to the Earth in March 2025 aboard the SpaceX, along with her crewmate, Butch Wilmore. The pair was launched to the space station in 2024, the first people to fly Boeing’s new Starliner crew capsule. Their mission, meant to last for a week, stretched to over nine months because of Starliner trouble.
Praising her contributions, NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman said, “Suni Williams has been a trailblazer in human spaceflight, shaping the future of exploration through her leadership aboard the space station and paving the way for commercial missions to low Earth orbit.”
“Her work advancing science and technology has laid the foundation for Artemis missions to the Moon and advancing toward Mars, and her extraordinary achievements will continue to inspire generations to dream big and push the boundaries of what’s possible. Congratulations on your well-deserved retirement, and thank you for your service to NASA and our nation.”
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