It was a ‘life-changing’ and ‘incredible’ experience to see Earth from space, said Indian-American astronaut Sirisha Bandla, who is part of billionaire Richard Branson’s crew on Virgin Galactic’s SpaceShipTwo Unity that took off from Space Port in the US’s New Mexico on Sunday.  

The 34-year-old on Sunday became the third Indian-origin woman after Kalpana Chawla and Sunita Williams to go to space and said, “I am kind of still up there but it’s so glad to be here.”

“I was trying to think about a better word than incredible but that is the only word that can come to my mind… Seeing the view of Earth is so life-changing but also the boost the rocket motor kicking in. The whole trip to space and back is just amazing,” Sirisha Bandla told NBC news.

Sirisha, who hopes the price tag for space travel will come down in the future, talked about her dream to go to space and describe the moment as emotional.  

“I have been dreaming of going to space since I was young and literally it is a dream come true,” she said.

“I have wanted to be an astronaut but I wasn’t able to go in the traditional National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) role,” the 34-year-old said. She could not join NASA as her poor eyesight could not meet the requirements to become a pilot or an astronaut for the space agency. 

Sirisha Bandla added, “I took a very unconventional way to go to space and I do believe that a lot of people are going to be able to experience this and that’s why we are here,” she said.

Sirisha Bandla, who is the Vice President, Government Affairs and Research Operations at Virgin Galactic, on the Unity22 mission on a Virgin Galactic test flight is handling the researcher experience.

Virgin Galactic – the business Branson started in 2004 – aims to fly private citizens to the edge of space. The trips are designed to permit passengers to experience three to four minutes of weightlessness and observe the curvature of Earth.

The Virgin Galactic carrier can launch up to eight people (two pilots and six passengers) on the Unity 22 flight, but on Sunday there were only six occupants (two pilots and four passengers).