A retired astronaut, a wealthy adventurer and two Saudis set for Sunday launch to space station

Peggy Whitson, America’s most experienced astronaut with 665 days in space and 10 spacewalks over three stays aboard the International Space Station, is poised to build on her legacy as one of the consensus “GOATs” — greatest of all time — in the American space program.

With a Ph.D. in biochemistry and two stints as commander of the space station, Whitson, former chief of NASA’s astronaut corps, last flew in space in 2017 after completing a 289-day station flight. She never expected to fly in space again.

But after retiring from NASA and joining Houston-based Axiom Space as director of human spaceflight, Whitson, now 63, is poised to blast off on her fourth flight Sunday, this time as commander of the SpaceX Crew Dragon “Freedom.”