NASA Astronauts Sunita Williams and Nick Hague Conduct Historic Spacewalk
New Delhi: Indian-origin NASA astronaut Sunita Williams stepped out of the International Space Station (ISS) for a spacewalk along with colleague Nick Hague on Thursday, marking Williams' first spacewalk in 12 years.
The US space agency confirmed that the spacewalk, designated US Spacewalk 91, was scheduled to last around six and a half hours. Hague, dressed in a suit with red stripes, served as spacewalk crew member 1, while Williams wore an unmarked suit. The duo carried out maintenance tasks, including replacing hardware and performing repairs on various equipment such as the NICER (Neutron star Interior Composition Explorer) X-ray telescope.
In a statement issued by NASA, the astronauts were working to replace a rate gyro assembly that provides orientation control for the station, install patches to cover damaged areas of light filters, and repair a reflector device used for navigational data. They also checked access areas and connector tools for future maintenance work on the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer.
The successful spacewalk was seen as another milestone for Williams, who has now completed her eighth space mission in her career, while Hague's fourth. NASA officials expressed satisfaction with the completion of the task and credited both astronauts for their professionalism during the spacewalk.
However, the US space agency also announced a second spacewalk scheduled to take place on January 23, where Williams and Hague will remove a radio frequency group antenna assembly from the station and collect samples of surface material for analysis.
The duo's return to Earth has been postponed until late March 2025, as NASA pushes back its launch window for the SpaceX Crew 10 mission. The astronauts had initially planned to return in February 2025 but opted to wait for an additional preparation period with the new SpaceX Dragon spacecraft to enhance safety measures.
Speaking about their prolonged stay in space, Williams recently expressed her desire to return home to her family, which has been separated from them for over a decade while they are on the ISS. Despite the extended duration of their mission, both astronauts remained committed to completing their tasks efficiently and effectively in support of station upgrades and furthering scientific knowledge.
(Alaryana Daily)