Working in a challenging, remote environment is nothing new for Chris. At MIT, he pursued his doctorate in physics with a focus on astrophysics, conducting much of his research in the Outback of Western Australia. He was part of the team that built the Murchison Widefield Array, a low-frequency radio telescope array designed to study the epoch of reionization of the early universe.

His PhD advisor, Jacqueline Hewitt, Julius A. Stratton Professor in Electrical Engineering and Physics, notes:

We were building the array [in the Outback] because it was far from radio interference caused by human activity. That interference is getting much worse however, and many believe soon it will no longer be possible to carry out radio astronomy research from the surface of the Earth. There are studies being done of radio astronomy facilities in space and on the Moon- perhaps Chris will help to build one of those someday!

Now Williams is set to take on his inaugural mission aboard the International Space Station as a flight engineer. During the mission, NASA reports that he will help "install and test a new modular workout system for long-duration missions, support experiments to improve cryogenic fuel efficiency and grow semiconductor crystals in space, and assist NASA in designing new re-entry safety protocols to protect crews during future missions.” Chris brings to the crew experience as a board-certified medical physicist, who also served as a volunteer emergency medical technician and firefighter during his time at MIT.

For more than 25 years, people have lived and worked continuously aboard the International Space Station, advancing scientific knowledge and making research breakthroughs that are not possible on Earth. Williams and fellow Soyuz MS-28 cosmonauts Sergey Kud-Sverchkov and Sergei Mikaev will join NASA astronauts Mike Fincke ‘89, Zena Cardman, and Jonny Kim, JAXA (Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency) astronaut Kimiya Yui, and Roscosmos cosmonauts Sergei Ryzhikov, Alexey Zubritsky, and Oleg Platonov already aboard the ISS for Expedition 73/74.

Coverage of mission milestones begins at 3:30 a.m. Thursday, November 27, on NASA+, Amazon Prime, and YouTube, as final Soyuz MS-28 launch preparations unfold at the Baikonur Cosmodrome in Kazakhstan. Leading up to his launch, @astro_chrisw has also shared pre-flight highlights on his Instagram page including the excitement ahead of the second capsule fit check and traditional tree planting in Cosmonauts Alley.

Recalling his days as an MIT Astrophysics PhD student collecting radio signals from a shipping container in the Australian outback, and looking forward to his new vocation as a NASA astronaut aboard a Soyuz capsule bound for the ISS, we wish Chris godspeed on his journey into orbit this Thanksgiving!