NASA astronaut Suni Williams retires after 27 years

NASA astronaut Suni Williams retired from the agency effective Dec. 27, 2025, concluding a 27-year career, the agency announced. Williams flew three missions aboard the International Space Station and logged 608 days in space, ranking second on the list of cumulative time in space by a NASA astronaut.

She completed nine spacewalks totaling 62 hours and 6 minutes — the most spacewalk time by a woman and fourth-most on the all-time cumulative list — and was the first person to run a marathon in space. Her missions include a first launch aboard space shuttle Discovery with STS-116 in December 2006 (returning aboard Atlantis with the STS-117 crew), service as a flight engineer for Expeditions 14/15 with four spacewalks, a 127-day Expedition 32/33 mission launched from Baikonur in 2012 during which she commanded Expedition 33 and performed three spacewalks to repair a radiator leak and replace a power component, and most recently a June 2024 launch aboard Boeing’s Starliner for the Crew Flight Test with Butch Wilmore, joining Expedition 71/72 and commanding Expedition 72 before returning to Earth in March 2025 on SpaceX Crew-9.

Williams also served in roles including NEEMO crew member in 2002, deputy chief of NASA’s Astronaut Office, director of Operations in Star City, and helped establish a helicopter training platform for future Moon landings. A retired U.S. Navy captain, she holds a bachelor’s degree from the U.S.

Key Topics

Science, Suni Williams, Nasa, International Space Station, Boeing Starliner