NASA astronaut Jessica Meir and European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut Sophie Adenot completed their spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS) on Tuesday. The mission aimed to conduct navigation work, scientific research, and technical maintenance of the station.
The pair began work at 8:40 AM Eastern Time (12:40 GMT). Over six hours and forty-nine minutes, Meir and Adenot installed a new retroreflector on the forward port of the station's 'Harmony' module to support spacecraft navigation during docking and rendezvous operations.
Additionally, they replaced a high-resolution camera on the station's truss and collected a sample from the exterior surface of the ISS for microorganism analysis. According to NASA, they also partially completed work on installing connecting cables for electrical systems and began preparations for a future spacewalk to replace the Alpha-magnetic spectrometer's heat-dissipating radiator.
During the spacewalk, Adenot experienced issues with the mobility of her left arm. Meir inspected Adenot's spacesuit and suggested that the glove's heating actuator was likely jamming, restricting movement in the left shoulder joint. As reported by NASA, the problem was resolved after disengaging the joint before the crew entered the airlock.
This spacewalk was the seventh for Meir and the third for Adenot, marking the 284th spacewalk supporting the assembly, maintenance, and modernization of the ISS.