Opinion

JUAN WILLIAMS: My nephew returned from space with a message America needs

Chris Williams is a flesh-and-blood reminder that space travel has the power to inspire awe and renew the American spirit of adventure

By Juan Williams Fox News

Published August 3, 2026 6:45am EDT | Updated August 3, 2026 7:00am EDT

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NASA astronaut begins eight-month mission aboard ISS

NASA astronaut Chris Williams joins 'Fox News Sunday' from the International Space Station to discuss his eight-month mission in space, the preparation required and more.

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In one of this year’s most popular movies, "Project Hail Mary," there’s no happy ending — the astronaut never makes it back to Earth.

And in 1969, just days before Apollo 11 landed on the moon, English singer, songwriter and actor David Bowie released a hit song about "Major Tom," an astronaut who floated into deep space, never making it home.

Today I’m writing a happy story. The NASA astronaut in my family just defied both the movie and the song.

Welcome back to planet Earth, Chris Williams.

NASA CHIEF DECLARES AMERICA 'ABSOLUTELY BACK' IN SPACE RACE, SAYS US WILL BEAT CHINA TO THE MOON

The drive to explore new frontiers is a hallmark of American history, from westward expansion to light bulbs, airplanes and personal computers.

This year, the U.S. sent a mission, Artemis II, to rocket around the moon in preparation for a return to the lunar surface for the first time since Americans Neil Armstrong and Buzz Aldrin stepped on the moon in July 1969.

And this year, I saw my nephew, the grandson of Panamanian immigrants, talking with his fellow astronauts as they sped by his post on the International Space Station.

The drive to explore new frontiers is a hallmark of American history, from westward expansion to light bulbs, airplanes and personal computers.

A few weeks later, Chris’ dad, my brother, Roger, got a Father’s Day greeting as Chris streamed into Trinity Episcopal Church in Washington, D.C. Even more emotional for me was hearing Roger praise his son for going to space and for growing "beyond every expectation."

NEW ARTEMIS II VIDEO SHOWS MOMENT NAVY MEDICAL TEAM OPENED HATCH, WELCOMED ASTRONAUTS

As his uncle, I’ve known Chris since he was a child, wearing a onesie adorned with astronauts and planets. It is hard to get my mind around the idea that he just spent eight months on the International Space Station, completing 3,856 orbits around the Earth at 17,000 miles an hour.

He did spacewalks, floating in........

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