Stuck in space for 9 months, Sunita Williams begins her return to earth | India looks forward to hosting illustrious daughter

NASA astronauts Nick Hague, Sunita Williams, Butch Wilmore, and cosmonaut Aleksandr Gorbunov (Crew-9) departed from the Space Station today, March 18. | (Pic: Commercial Crew)

The journey back to Earth will take approximately 17 hours, and they are expected to splash off the coast of Florida around 3.27 am IST on March 19. | (Pic: NASA)

Williams and Wilmore were part of Boeing’s Starliner mission, launched in June 2024 as its first crewed test flight. Initially meant to be a week-long expedition, it turned into an extended stay due to propulsion issues with the Boeing Starliner spacecraft, which made it unsafe for their return. | (Pic: REUTERS)

As Sunita Williams and Butch Wilmore are classified under the GS-15 pay grade, the highest level for federal employees under the General Schedule (GS) system, for these nine months, they earned a prorated salary between $93,850 - $122,004 (approximately Rs 81 lakh to Rs 1.05 crore).

In a letter sent to Williams, Prime Minister of India, Narendra Modi, sent his best wishes and expressed that upon William's return, India would love to host 'one of its illustrious daughters.' | (Pic: PTI)

Williams's family is supposedly performing yagna for her return. Speaking to ANI, her cousin brother in Gujarat, Dinesh Rawal, said, "Everyone in the family...is happy that she is coming back home...It is a huge day for us... She is the pride of the nation... We are doing a 'Yagna' for her return and will distribute sweets upon her return" | (Pic: ANI)

Born on September 19, 1965, in Euclid, Ohio, to Deepak and Bonnie Pandya, Sunita’s roots trace back to Jhulasan village in Gujarat, India. Her father, Deepak Pandya, was a neuroscientist who migrated to the United States in 1957. | (Pic: NASA)

While Williams was stranded in space, the people of Jhulasan showed unwavering support by lighting a symbol of hope, an oil lamp, for her safe return.

After nine months in space, astronauts are expected to suffer bone and muscle deterioration, radiation exposure, and vision impairment challenges.