NASA astronaut Sunita Williams, who has been in space for nearly five months, extended a happy Diwali to those celebrating the festival in the United States and around the world.
In a video message shared from the International Space Station (ISS), the Indian-origin astronaut said that this year she got the unique opportunity to celebrate Diwali from 260 miles above Earth and expressed her desire to keep her cultural roots alive by teaching. Remembered father’s efforts. Told him and his family about Diwali and other Indian festivals.
“Hello from the ISS,” Williams said. “I want to extend a very happy Diwali to the White House and everyone celebrating today around the world.”
He further added, “This year I have the unique opportunity to celebrate Diwali on the ISS, 260 miles above Earth…My father has maintained and shared his cultural roots by teaching us about Diwali and other Indian festivals.”
Emphasizing the festival’s message of hope and renewal, he said Diwali is a time of happiness as goodness prevails in the world.
Williams also expressed her gratitude to US President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris for participating in the Diwali festivities and recognizing the community’s contributions.
He said, “Diwali is a time of joy as goodness prevails in the world…Thank you to the President and Vice President for celebrating Diwali with our community today and recognizing the many contributions of our community.”
The message was especially poignant as it came during a special Diwali celebration held at the White House.
It is noteworthy that Sunita Williams has been in the ISS since June along with her fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore. The pair boarded Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft on June 5 for their first crewed flight, arriving at the space station on June 6.
The decision was made to return Starliner to Earth without its crew, and the spacecraft successfully returned on September 6, after NASA in August said it was “too risky” to return Wilmore and Williams to Earth.
Wilmore and Williams formally continued their work as part of the campaign and will return in February next year. This means that the test flight, which lasted for a week, will be extended to about 8 months.
(Except for the headline, this story has not been edited by NDTV staff and is published from a syndicated feed.)
