New Delhi, October 07: Planning an ambitious schedule of ten spacewalks over the next three months, NASA seemingly is gearing up for a marathon with one of them to be the first spacewalk conducted entirely by women. The two women currently at the International Space Station, NASA astronauts Christina Koch and Jessica Meir, are scheduled to take a spacewalk together by October 21.
"It will be the fourth in a series of 10 spacewalks scheduled to take place during the next three months, and it will be the first time that two women do a spacewalk together", NASA said in a statement adding that it had originally planned to have the first all-female spacewalk in March, but that plan fell apart due to a lack of properly fitted spacesuits.
For the intended spacewalk in March, Koch was going to be paired with astronaut Anne McClain, who has since returned to Earth. "In March, NASA cited spacesuit availability as the reason for scrapping the walk. McClain herself made the decision and the teams supported her", Koch said.
Meanwhile, Meir arrived on the space station for her first mission this week. In addition to her first spacewalk with Koch, she also is slated to conduct a spacewalk with European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano. Meir shared an image of her hugging Koch after arriving on the station.
"This is how it feels when in addition to your childhood dream being fulfilled by arriving to Space Station, you're greeted by your Astro-brothers and sisters on the other side of the hatch," Meir said in her tweet.
The duo however have been trained together for the last six years, being members of the same astronaut class. "The upcoming spacewalks will help replace solar array batteries and upgrade them to lithium-ion batteries, as well as refurbish the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, a scientific instrument that explores the fundamental nature of the universe", the statement by NASA read.