Peggy Annette Whitson: Who Is The Only Female Astronaut In Axiom Mission 4?

by

Peggy Annette Whitson hails from the U.S. as a biochemistry researcher and currently works as an astronaut for Axiom Space. After leaving NASA in 2018, she had served as its top astronaut.

Over the course of multiple space assignments, Whitson has accumulated an impressive 676 days in orbit, outranking every American and female astronaut with respect to extended time spent in space.

Early Life & Education

Growing up, Peggy Annette Whitson resided on a farm not far from Beaconsfield, Iowa, alongside her siblings Kathy, Brian, and Hugh, as well as her mom, Beth, and dad, Keith.

Growing up on a farm with her family, she watched the first moon landing on TV in 1969. This moment sparked a dream within her: to become an astronaut.

Back in 1978, I proudly graduated from Mount Ayr Community High School, then continued my academic journey at Iowa Wesleyan College, where I earned my Bachelor of Science degree in both biology and chemistry in 1981.

After that, I dived deep into my studies, earning my doctorate in biochemistry from Rice University in 1986, all under the watchful guidance of Professor Kathleen Matthews.

Subsequently, she stayed on at Rice University as a Robert A. Welch Postdoctoral Fellow until October 1986. Her husband is Clarence F. Sams. (Here, the sentence has been rephrased to maintain the same meaning but with a more conversational tone and improved readability.)

Peggy Annette Whitson’s Career

Following the conclusion of her fellowship at Rice University, Peggy Annette Whitson embarked on her professional journey at the Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, where she worked as a resident research associate for the National Research Council.

From April 1988 until September 1989, Whitson held the role of team leader for the Biochemistry Research Team at KRUG International, a company that worked on medical science projects for NASA’s Johnson Space Center (NASA-JSC).

Between 1989 and 1993, Whitson served as a biochemistry researcher within the Biomedical Operations and Research Division at NASA’s Johnson Space Center (JSC).

From 1991 to 1993, her role was that of a supervisor responsible for technical oversight in the Biochemistry Research Labs, which were part of the Biomedical Operations and Research Division.

Between 1991 and 1992, she functioned as the developer for the Bone Cell Research Experiment’s payload component on SL-J (STS-47). She was also involved in the US-USSR collaborative team focusing on Space Medicine and Biology.

From 1992 to 1995, she held the position as the project scientist for the Shuttle-Mir Program (including missions STS-60, STS-63, STS-71, Mir 18, and Mir 19). She remained in this role until the completion of Phase 1A of the program.

In April 1996, Peggy Annette Whitson started her journey towards becoming an astronaut; this process began in earnest in August of the same year. After two years of extensive training and assessment, she was given technical roles within the Astronaut Office Operations Planning Branch. From 1998 to 1999, she served as the head of the Crew Test Support Team in Russia.

Back in October 2009, NASA named Whitson as the Head of their Astronaut Corps, a role previously held by Steven W. Lindsey. Notably, she became the first female and the first non-pilot to assume this top position within NASA.

In July 2012, when Whitson resumed her active flight duties, she chose to resign, with Robert Behnken stepping into her role instead. Notably, Whitson had twice led missions aboard the International Space Station.

Axiom Mission 4 Launch

Peggy Annette Whitson currently holds the position of Human Space Flight Director at Axiom Space. In January 2021, it was made known that she would step in as backup commander for Axiom Mission 1, suggesting a possibility for her participation in future Axiom Space missions.

On the 21st of May, 2023, Whitson resumed his space journey, taking on the commanding position for the second Axiom expedition, which is popularly referred to as Axiom Mission 2.

During the course of her mission, she linked up with the International Space Station and stayed there for eight days in space. After this, she was designated as the understudy for Axiom Mission 3. On June 26, 2025, Whitson led the fourth Axiom expedition, which was known as Axiom Mission 4.

Read More

2025-06-27 13:54