“Stranded” NASA astronaut Sunita Williams captured a stunning selfie as she made history during her ninth spacewalk.
Williams is currently aboard the International Space Station (ISS), where she has been stranded for the last seven months with fellow American NASA astronaut Barry “Butch” Wilmore due to a propulsion leak in their spacecraft.
On January 30, Williams completed her ninth spacewalk alongside Wilmore. In doing so, Williams broke the record for the most total spacewalk time by a female astronaut — surpassing the previous time held by former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson.
With a total of 62 hours and 6 minutes spent outside the spacecraft, Williams now ranks fourth on NASA’s all-time list.
During this spacewalk, Williams captured a breathtaking selfie of herself — an image NASA calls “the ultimate selfie.”
In the extraordinary photo, Williams’ arms, hands, and camera are reflected in the glossy visor of her spacesuit helmet. The image also includes part of the ISS structure, the vast blackness of space, and the Pacific Ocean on the left. Elements of her spacesuit frame the shot, with a glimpse of space appearing to the right.
“NASA astronaut Suni Williams captured this selfie on January 30, 2025, while the ISS orbited 263 miles (423 km) above the Pacific Ocean,” NASA writes in an Instagram post sharing the image.
“This memorable photo was taken during Williams’ ninth spacewalk, where she and fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore removed hardware from the station’s exterior and collected surface samples from areas near the Destiny laboratory and Quest airlock for analysis.”
The samples that the astronauts collected offer insights into whether microorganisms are being released from the space station, their quantity, potential travel distance, and survival capabilities in extreme conditions of space.
Williams and Wilmore were launched to the ISS in Boeing’s Starliner spacecraft in June 2024 for an eight-day mission — but the pair have since been stranded there due to technical failures, including helium leaks and thruster issues. President Donald Trump recently urged SpaceX CEO Elon Musk to “‘go get’ the two brave astronauts” on social media.
The astronauts are now scheduled to return in March 2025 on the Crew 9 mission after spending nearly 300 days in space.
Image credits: Header photo via NASA.
