By BlueShift | 2026-01-22

NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, who was marooned in space when an eight-day mission turned into an eight-month ordeal, has retired after 27 years of service, the US space agency said January 20.

NASA Administrator Jared Isaacman called her "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," he said in a statement.

Williams and fellow astronaut Barry "Butch" Wilmore set out on an eight-day mission in June 2024 to test fly Boeing's new Starliner capsule on its first crewed mission when they were unexpectedly stranded, AFP reported.

Starliner developed propulsion issues while Williams and Wilmore were traveling to the International Space Station (ISS) and it was deemed unfit to fly back.

This prompted NASA to entrust the return of their astronauts to SpaceX, with the two veteran astronauts finally returning to Earth with SpaceX last March.

Wilmore announced his retirement in August.

'A pioneering leader'

"Over the course of Suni’s impressive career trajectory, she has been a pioneering leader," said Vanessa Wyche, director of NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Williams logged 608 days in space -- the second most cumulative time in space by a NASA astronaut. She completed three missions aboard the ISS, and set numerous human spaceflight records.

These included nine spacewalks totaling over 62 hours, the most spacewalk time by a woman and fourth-most on the all-time cumulative spacewalk duration list.

She also was the first person to run a marathon in space.

With Wilmore, Williams ranks sixth on the list of longest single spaceflights by a US citizen, due to the Starliner incident, according to NASA.

Beyond her spaceflight experience, Williams -- a retired US Navy captain -- held numerous roles throughout her NASA career. Most recently, she helped establish a helicopter training platform to prepare astronauts for future Moon landings.

"Anyone who knows me knows that space is my absolute favorite place to be," said Williams, describing her service to NASA as "an incredible honor."