Watch Live: Trump Calls NASA Astronaut Peggy Whitson in Space

Whitson has surpassed NASA astronaut Jeff Williams’ record of 534 cumulative days in space.

US President Donald Trump is making a special Earth-to-space call from the Oval Office to personally congratulate NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson. (Photo: Reuters) 

US President Donald Trump is making a special Earth-to-space call from the Oval Office to personally congratulate NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson for her record-breaking stay aboard the International Space Station. Whitson, the Commander of the station’s Expedition 51 crew, has on Monday officially set the US record for the most cumulative days in space, surpassing NASA astronaut Jeff Williams’ record of 534 days.

Watch the conversation between Trump and Whitson live here:

Also Read: Astronaut Peggy Whitson Breaks Spacewalk Records

Whitson is the first woman to command the space station twice, and holds the record for most spacewalks conducted by a female astronaut.

Trump is joined by daughter Ivanka Trump and NASA astronaut Kate Rubins for the 20-minute call. Whitson, in space, is joined by NASA astronaut Jack Fischer, who arrived at the orbiting laboratory on Thursday.

The call will be made available to schools, museums, and other organisations across the nation and globally, NASA said in a statement on Wednesday.

(With IANS inputs)