In 1997, the Texas Legislature passed a bill allowing the NASA astronauts to cast ballots from orbit. Therefore this time, Sunita Williams is all set to make history as she plans to vote in the upcoming US Presidential election aboard the International Space Station (ISS).
Earlier, David Wolf casted his vote from space while aboard the Mir Space Station and Kate Rubins voted from the ISS during the 2020 elections. Reportedly, David Wolf was the first American to vote from space.
According to India Today, William will first complete a Federal Post Card Application to request an absentee ballot. Once received, she will fill out the electronic ballot on the ISS computer system. Then next, the ballot will travel through the agency’s Near Space Network, utilising the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System. The vote will be transmitted to a ground antenna at NASA’s White Sands Test Facility in New Mexico before being securely transferred to the Mission Control Center at Johnson Space Center in Houston. From Houston, the encrypted ballot will be sent to the appropriate county clerk for processing. As per sources, only Williams and the county clerk will have access to the ballot to ensure the integrity of the vote.
However, the voting process completely depends on NASA’s sophisticated Space Communication and Navigation (SCaN) Program.