Photos have revealed NASA astronaut Sunita Williams’ shocking weight loss as she and her teammate remain stuck on the International Space Station (ISS).

Williams, 59, and Barry Wilmore, 61, have been living on the ISS for five months, ever since Boeing’s faulty Staliner spacecraft was deemed unsafe to return them to Earth.

A “emaciated” photo of Williams taken on September 24 recently sparked concerns due to her “sunken” cheeks, which suggested she had rapidly lost weight.

More recent images also show her with pronounced cheekbones and a slimmer figure – which is concerning, considering she still has three months until her return.

Publicly, NASA said Williams was “in good health” and undergoing “routine medical evaluations.”

But behind the scenes, the space agency has been scrambling to “stabilize the weight loss and hopefully reverse it,” according to a source.

The unnamed NASA employee who is “directly involved in the mission” told the New York Post that Williams was “unable to keep up with the high-calorie diets astronauts must consume” while aboard the ISS .

Research has shown that during long-duration missions, the harsh environment takes a toll on human health, leading to problems such as weight loss, muscle atrophy, bone loss, cardiovascular deconditioning, vision and kidney stones.

NASA astronauts Sunita Williams and Barry Wilmore on June 5, preparing for the Starliner launch that would take them to the International Space Station.

Additionally, living on the ISS has been found to have a greater impact on women’s health than men’s health in several ways.

On the one hand, it has been found that female astronauts lose more weight – particularly due to loss of muscle mass – than men during spaceflight.

“The pounds have melted off and she now has skin and bones.” So it’s a priority to help him stabilize his weight loss and hopefully reverse it,” the NASA source said. New York Post.

Williams and Wilmore launched to the orbiting laboratory on June 5 for what was supposed to be a 10-day mission, but were stuck there for 156 days.

They should now return to Earth aboard SpaceX’s Crew-9 Dragon capsule, docked with the ISS since September 29.

Williams, Wilmore and the four Crew-9 astronauts will return home together in February 2025.

By then, the Starliner crew will have spent about eight to nine months on the ISS, depending on when they land in February.

During this time, they will have endured microgravity, confined spaces and high doses of space radiation.

A doctor raised concerns about Williams’ health, saying the September 24 photo showed her “emaciated.”

About a month ago, NASA doctors began working with Williams to help her regain weight, even before images showing her weight loss attracted attention, the source said.

To stop and reverse her weight loss, Williams may have to eat up to 5,000 calories a day, the source added.

The average woman on Earth needs to eat between 1,600 and 2,400 calories to maintain her weight, according to Healthline.

The source said Williams started the mission weighing about 140 pounds.

Earlier this week, NASA spokesperson Jimi Russell told DM.com that “all NASA astronauts aboard the International Space Station undergo routine medical evaluations, are monitored by surgeons at look dedicated and are in good health.

Over the past five months, photos sent back to Earth have offered a glimpse into the lives of Williams and Wilmore as they adapt to their unforeseen circumstances.

Just hours before the Starliner’s June 5 launch, the crew was photographed beaming in their blue Boeing spacesuits as they prepared for their short mission.

In this photo, the astronauts – particularly Williams – look strikingly different from recent images, including this one from September.

This image was one of several images posted on the official ISS Instagram page showing Williams, Wilmore and the other ISS astronauts making pizza together.

It recently went viral when the public voiced concerns over Williams’ shocking appearance.

In it, she appears “emaciated,” Seattle veteran pulmonologist Dr. Vinay Gupta told DM.com.

“What you see in this photo is someone who I think is experiencing the natural stress of living at very high altitudes, even in a pressurized cabin, for extended periods of time,” he said.

“Her cheeks look a little sunken — and that usually happens when you kind of have a total weight loss.”

‘BFrom what I see at least in the photo, I don’t think she’s really at a point where I say her life is in danger.

‘BBut I don’t think you can look at this photo and say she’s a healthy weight.

The NASA source told the New York Post she was shocked by the image. “I took my breath away when I saw the last photo,” they said.

“And it’s something we talk about, but not something we obsess over. This is a real concern and everyone takes it seriously.

The body burns more calories in space as it adapts to changes in gravity and attempts to maintain its body temperature in cold and harsh conditions.

“They need to eat about 3,500 to 4,000 calories a day, just to maintain their current weight,” the NASA source said.

“And when you start to fall behind, your weight drops quickly.”

“They’re eating very high-calorie foods, as you can see – cured meats and, you know, other meats, protein, but high-fat cured meats – it’s not necessarily a balanced diet.” , said Dr. Gupta.

And to prevent muscle and bone loss, astronauts exercise about 2.5 hours a day, which burns even more calories.

‘Tthese are just things that the human body can’t adapt to, and one of them is, you know, it’s probably losing more calories than it’s taking in,” Dr. Gupta said .

“His body is probably working harder to perform basic tasks because the partial pressure of oxygen is lower than it would be at sea level.”

Wilmore (front left) and Williams (front right) pose with fellow Expedition 72 crew members for a photo released October 4.

The problem of body degradation is a particular concern for women.

A 2014 NASA study found that women experience greater blood plasma volume loss than men during spaceflight, and that women’s stress response typically includes an increase in heart rate, while men respond with an increase in vascular resistance.

The loss of blood plasma causes a temporary increase in your metabolic rate while your body mobilizes resources to adapt to the loss of plasma.

And this response can slightly increase your calorie consumption, leading to weight loss similar to what Williams might experience.

Another study published by Ball University in 2023 also found that women lose more muscle than men in a microgravity environment such as spaceflight.

More recent photos, including one in which Williams and Wilmore pose for a group photo with the other members of the Expedition 72 crew on October 4, show that Williams still appears thin.

NASA declined to comment on the statements made by the anonymous agency employee and instead referred DM.com to its original statement which asserts that all astronauts aboard the ISS are “in good health.”

Williams and Wilmore still have to wait about three to four months before they can return to Earth aboard SpaceX’s Crew Dragon.

At this time, there is no evidence to suggest that Williams’ alleged decline in health will impact this timeline.

Even though the Starliner mission has expanded considerably, Williams and Wilmore’s ISS mission will not be the longest ever flown by an astronaut.

This record is held by Russian cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub, who returned to Earth aboard the Russian Soyuz MS-25 spacecraft on September 23 after 374 days on the ISS.

Most recently, a crew of four NASA/SpaceX astronauts returned to Earth on October 25 after a 232-day stay on the ISS.

All four crew members were taken to hospital after landing. Three received medical evaluations and were released the same day, while one was kept for observation overnight.

NASA has not released any details about why the astronauts needed medical attention, nor which ones were kept overnight.