National Aeronautics and Space Administration astronaut Peggy Whitson on Monday broke the record for the most consecutive days spent in space by an astronaut from the United States – Nasa said she had broken astronaut Jeff Williams’ record of 534 days.

During the course of her current mission on the International Space Station, Whitson broke a number of records. She was first woman to command the ISS in 2008 and made history again on April 9 by assuming command of Expedition 51 for the second time. In March, she had broken the record for the most spacewalks completed by a woman. The 57-year-old is also the oldest female astronaut in space.

She began her career at Nasa in the 1980s, the organisation said. She holds a doctorate in biochemistry and has held several research-related positions. She had a stint as deputy division chief of the Medical Sciences Division at Nasa’s Johnson Space Center in Houston and was also the co-chair of the US-Russian Mission Science Working Group. Whitson was selected as an astronaut in 1996.