Whitson has earned attention by not just setting records (becoming the first female ISS commander, having the most spacewalks by a female astronaut and spending the most time in space of any American astronaut), but by being enthusiastic about the whole process. While she was originally slated to return to Earth in June, she eagerly accepted the opportunity to stay three more months when Roscosmos decided to reduce its own crew and risk short-staffing the ISS. Simply put, Whitson is one of those relatively few astronauts who's not only passionate about space, but has had plenty of opportunities to show it.