KOLKATA (India), April 3 – United States Astronaut, Sunita Williams (pic)expressed hope that the National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) and the Indian Space Research Organisation (ISRO) will collaborate in the future, Press Trust of India (PTI) reported. She said the Indian government should accelerate its space programme as a lot of students and young people are showing interest in the field.
Williams, who holds the record for the longest spacewalk by a female astronaut at 50 hours and 40 minutes, involving seven space missions, said the US and India were developing a positive relationship as far as space was concerned.
“Over the time I had been at the NASA, I had seen that relationship between India and United States going on a much more positive direction, particularly when it comes to space,” Williams said.
William said that the first time she had come here she didn’t have permission to go and visit people from the Indian space agency.
“And now I see that people from ISRO and NASA are talking together,” she noted.
Answering to a question on whether there was scope for the two space agencies to work together, she said India had the capability to do a lot more in space research than launching satellites, adding that children here were very inquisitive about the field.
The astronaut was in the city to participate in an interactive session with students and space enthusiasts. She is on a week-long trip to India and Delhi was her first port of call on Monday. She had last visited India in 2007.
BERNAMA
