Nov 20 2012

From The Space Library

MEDIA ADVISORY: M12-217 NASA'S RECENTLY RETURNED STATION COMMANDER WILLIAMS AVAILABLE FOR INTERVIEWS

HOUSTON -- NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, who returned to Earth Sunday after four months on the International Space Station, will be available for live satellite interviews from 6-7 a.m. CST Friday, Nov. 30. Williams, who was born in Euclid, Ohio, but considers Needham, Mass., her hometown, launched to the orbiting laboratory on a Russian Soyuz spacecraft July 15. She spent 125 days aboard the station as an Expedition 32 flight engineer and Expedition 33 commander. Williams' stint aboard the space station included three spacewalks, during which she and Japanese astronaut Akihiko Hoshide repaired several critical elements of the complex. Williams now has spent 322 days in space on two missions. She ranks sixth on the all-time U.S. list for cumulative time in space and second on the all-time list for women. She previously spent 195 days in space as a flight engineer during Expedition 14/15. With seven spacewalks totaling 50 hours, 40 minutes, Williams holds the record for total cumulative spacewalk time by a female astronaut. Williams received a bachelor's degree in physical science from the United States Naval Academy and a master's degree in engineering management from Florida Institute of Technology, Melbourne, Fla. She was selected as an astronaut in 1998.