Estimated read time: 2-3 minutes
- Astronaut Suni Williams has been in space for nearly seven months.
- Originally an eight-day mission, delays with the Starliner extended her stay.
- Williams maintains contact with family and shares her experiences with students.
NEEDHAM, Mass. — Massachusetts native and astronaut Suni Williams said she's "trying to remember what it's like to walk" after being stuck in space for almost seven months.
Williams on Monday was answering questions at the International Space Station from students at Needham High School, where she graduated from in 1983. One student asked her what microgravity feels like in space, and she answered that it felt like she was swimming or flying.
"I've been up here long enough right now I've been trying to remember what it's like to walk. I haven't walked. I haven't sat down. I haven't laid down. You don't have to. You can just close your eyes and float where you are right here," Williams said.
She said that she and astronaut Butch Wilmore expected their trip to be longer than eight days since it was the first time they were flying the aircraft but did not expect it to be delayed that long.
"It was a little bit of a shock, actually," Williams explained to students. "We knew that it would be probably a month or so, honestly. But the extended stay was just a little bit different." Williams said she is having fun in space and is glad she can share the experience with everyone back on Earth. She explained that it has changed her relationship with her family.
"My mother's getting a little bit older, so in that regard, I just try to stay in touch with them and those guys as much as possible," Williams said. "I think I talk to my mom practically every day. Just check in with her and call her and see how she's doing. So it's just a little bit different relationship than we had potentially planned on for the last couple of months. But we're managing."
She said that she doesn't necessarily feel isolated in space because of her busy schedule and her ability to talk to people at home.
The Needham native has been stuck in space with Wilmore for the last seven months after problems with the Starliner concerned NASA and prompted them to keep them up there longer.
Their trip was meant to last eight to 10 days originally but has since been delayed multiple times. A SpaceX Crew-9 Dragon went into space with the intention of bringing the astronauts down in February.
However, their replacements are aboard a different aircraft, SpaceX Crew-10, which is not expected to launch into space until late March or April. That means they are not able to return to space until they complete a handover period.
