Peggy Whitson

“My desire to contribute to the spaceflight team as we move forward in our exploration of space has only increased over the years.”

“Breaking records has never been my goal. I think it's important that we're continually pushing our limits and showing that we can extend beyond what we have done before.”

“You need to live a little bit outside your comfort zone because you can be even more than you dream of.”

“I started out as a farm girl in Iowa, and I dreamed of being an astronaut and an explorer. And I made it.”

“It's like being a bird, maybe, the perspective of flying over the Earth.”

“I think the legacy of the space station will be that we can do something this technically complex in an international way.”

“One of the most beautiful sights is when the rim of the Earth is bright on one side, and you see this defined line of the atmosphere. You see how close and thin it is. We've got to be careful. We've got to take care of this planet.”

“You see billions and billions of stars and recognize that you know some of those have planets, too, and maybe there's life out there, and this is just one of billions of galaxies... and so it gives you this huge perspective of how far we potentially have to go for real exploration.”

“I do think space hotels are probably in our future.”

“There is a potential to be a big explosion of what spaceflight is gonna mean to just an everyday person in the near future. I think it's very hopeful for our young people: all the exciting things that they could be doing in the future relative to space and space exploration.”

“My undergraduate, I double-majored in biology and chemistry. Biology was kind of my love.”

“Work ethic is probably my No. 1 value and No. 1 attribute.”

“I would love to set foot on another planet - lunar or Mars or somewhere.”

“Even if my job for the day is cleaning the vents or fixing the toilet, it still feels good to be a part of the space program and advancing exploration.”

“I know the first female astronauts selected were definitely an inspiration to me, and so maybe I will be a role model.”

“Zero gravity is such an alien environment - completely different from everything we've grown up with every single day of our lives. And it's incomprehensible how much better it was than I anticipated it would be.”

“I would certainly encourage young people to pursue their dreams. It isn't always an easy path, but it's worth going after. And I figure if a farmer's daughter from Iowa can become an astronaut, you can be just about anything you want to be.”

“I learned to not be afraid to fix things that break.”

“Know what it is that drives you - motivates you - and pursue it. Endeavor to work to make it happen.”

“My parents are the hardest-working people I ever knew: they always worked every day, all day; they had to come up with the solutions to make things work. And I think that work ethic, maybe stubbornness, single-mindedness, definitely played a role for me. I'm definitely thankful for my roots.”