Quotes from Sunita Williams

It is a common fact that we see light flashes in a dark environment while living up here, and this experiment is essentially trying to detect how we humans detect these flashes - not sure if these are visual, if they are some type of radiation maybe sensed by some other part of the brain.

I flew helicopters, and I loved flying helicopters on the East Coast when I did a couple of deployments out to the Mediterranean and the Persian Gulf.

In my space journey, I felt vulnerable because we did not have anyone with medical background. When we make that big trip to Mars, we would need a doctor on board.

The space walks were amazing with the incredible views.

I think I am a smart aleck because I grew up close enough to Boston, and most people from Massachusetts talk fast, and I have a little bit of a wiseacre, and I think I'm a little bit like that.

I love anything paneer! Our family favorite, however, is 'Dal Dhokli,' a quintessential Gujarati dish of bread dumplings and lentil soup. That's the big meal of the week typically prepared by my mother on Sundays.

It took a little while to get used to falling asleep without laying down on a bed or having a pillow.

I think every test pilot's dream is to be on the start of something that's brand new.

The Progress is launched from Baikonur in Kazakhstan, just like the Soyuz. It almost looks the same as the Soyuz but unmanned, so, essentially filled up with supplies for us - anything from food, science experiments, repair parts, etc., can go in it.

A bonus container is food, especially for each individual - supposed to be one every month, but in fine Pandya fashion, I have been 'saving' them. They are food that we requested or indicated that we particularly liked.

It's only now that I see the bigger picture: Our ways to attain spirituality may be different - through diverse religious, customs and traditions - but they're modeled on similar principles and ideologies. That's what ties us all together.

Space is absolutely a 3-D world in comparison to our 2-D world on Earth.

Sweat doesn't fall off you. The water just accumulates until it gets too big and agitated and falls off like a sphere of water. It then floats around until it hits something. It takes a lot of water to fall off. Usually it just hangs on, so you get a quick build-up of sweat when working out.

I grew up as a swimmer, speaking of sports; I spent a lot of time before school and after school swimming.

My first mission was six and a half months. We weren't exactly sure how long it was going to be because I went up and back on the space shuttle, which was dependent on weather for launch and landing.

My siblings and I grew up on Indian food. My mother, though of Slovenian descent, learned to cook Indian delicacies for my father after their wedding.

You can hover in the air if you want, or you can push off of something and glide through the air - just like a fish. I also think it is like being a fish, since you can catch food in your mouth easily because it is suspended in the air - just like when you put fish food in a tank - the fish swim up to it, open their mouths, and eat the food.

Every month, we weigh ourselves to make sure we aren't losing weight. I really have been eating more than I do on Earth to make sure I don't lose too much weight.

Funny how words in one language get used in another language. For example, 'scotch' in Russian is tape and 'pampers' means diapers.

Usually, if you stop for tea, someone will feel the desire to join you.

We really have the most beautiful planet in our solar system. None other can sustain life like we know it. None other has blue water and white clouds covering colorful landmasses filled with thriving, beautiful, living things like human beings.

Me personally - not something to do with NASA - I do think there is a God, and it's somebody looking out for us and trying to guide us to live a very happy, productive life. There is further meaning. That's just my thought.

I think after orbiting for a while and looking at the surface, I think the natural tendency is to want to experience it, to go down there and touch it. I started thinking about the Apollo astronauts who orbited the moon and didn't land - that must have been agonizing!

We take things to remind us of home. I think my favourite is a stuffed dog that was homemade from a picture of my little Jack Russell terrier.