Spacewalkers Complete Radio Hardware Removal and Microbe Search

Spacewalkers Complete Radio Hardware Removal and Microbe Search

NASA spacewalker Suni Williams is attached to the tip of the Canadarm2 robotic arm as the International Space Station orbited 260 miles above the Earth. Credit: NASA+
NASA spacewalker Suni Williams is attached to the tip of the Canadarm2 robotic arm as the International Space Station orbited 260 miles above the Earth. Credit: NASA+

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore concluded their spacewalk at 1:09 p.m. EST Jan. 30. It was the ninth spacewalk for Williams and the fifth for Wilmore, and it was the 274th spacewalk in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades. Williams surpassed former NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson’s record for total spacewalking time by a female astronaut. Williams now has 62 hours, 6 minutes of total spacewalk time, fourth on NASA’s all-time list.

Williams and Wilmore completed their primary objectives, including removing a radio frequency group antenna assembly from the station’s truss and collecting samples of surface material for analysis from the Destiny laboratory and the Quest airlock.


Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog@space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia

NASA Astronauts Begin Spacewalk for Maintenance and Science

NASA Astronauts Begin Spacewalk for Maintenance and Science

Astronaut Suni Williams (left) is conducting her ninth career spacewalk and Butch Wilmore (right) is conducting his fifth career spacewalk today.
Astronaut Suni Williams (left) is conducting her ninth career spacewalk and Butch Wilmore (right) is conducting his fifth career spacewalk today.

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore began a spacewalk at approximately 7:43 a.m. EST to remove a radio frequency group antenna assembly from the station’s truss, collect samples of surface material for analysis from the Destiny laboratory and the Quest airlock to see whether microorganisms may exist on the exterior of the orbital complex, and prepare a spare elbow joint for the Canadarm2 robotic arm.

NASA’s coverage continues on NASA+. Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

Williams is crew member 1, wearing a suit with red stripes. Wilmore is spacewalk crew member 2, wearing an unmarked suit.


Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog@space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia

NASA+ is Live Covering Spacewalk for Radio Hardware Removal, Microbe Search

NASA+ is Live Covering Spacewalk for Radio Hardware Removal, Microbe Search

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore will exit the International Space Station's Quest airlock to conduct a science and maintenance spacewalk.
NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore will exit the International Space Station’s Quest airlock to conduct a science and maintenance spacewalk.

NASA’s coverage is underway on NASA+ as two astronauts will conduct a spacewalk outside the International Space Station. The spacewalk is scheduled to begin at approximately 8 a.m. EST and last about six and a half hours.0

Learn how to watch NASA content through a variety of platforms, including social media.

NASA astronauts Suni Williams and Butch Wilmore will exit the station’s Quest airlock to remove a radio frequency group antenna assembly from the station’s truss, collect samples of surface material for analysis from the Destiny laboratory and the Quest airlock to see whether microorganisms may exist on the exterior of the orbital complex, and prepare a spare elbow joint for the Canadarm2 robotic arm in the event it is needed for a replacement.

Williams will serve as spacewalk crew member 1 and wear a suit with red stripes. Wilmore will serve as spacewalk crew member 2 and wear an unmarked suit. This spacewalk will be Williams’ ninth and Wilmore’s fifth, and it will be the 274th spacewalk in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.


Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog@space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia

Crew Ready for Thursday Spacewalk, Keeps Up Space Agriculture Research

Crew Ready for Thursday Spacewalk, Keeps Up Space Agriculture Research

Astronaut Suni Williams works in the Quest airlock readying a pair of spacesuits that she and astronaut Nick Hague will wear during a spacewalk on Jan. 30, 2025.
Astronaut Suni Williams works in the Quest airlock readying a pair of spacesuits that she and astronaut Nick Hague will wear during a spacewalk on Jan. 30, 2025.

The Expedition 72 crew members have completed preparations for a science and maintenance spacewalk scheduled for Thursday. Space agriculture, Earth observations, and lab maintenance rounded out the day for the International Space Station residents.

Commander Suni Williams and Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore, two NASA astronauts who are scheduled to begin a spacewalk at 8 a.m. EST on Thursday, have completed their procedure reviews and spacesuit checks. They also joined NASA Flight Engineers Nick Hague and Don Pettit and practiced on a computer the Canadarm2 robotic arm maneuvers necessary to remove radio communications hardware, the first of two main spacewalking tasks. The second main task will see the two spacewalkers swab sites outside the orbital outpost to collect samples of potential microbes for analysis.

Hague began his day in the Kibo laboratory module making space and readying the Astrobee robotic free flyers for operations testing their ability to downlink video and imagery to mission controllers in real time. Pettit was back on space gardening duty processing samples and installing research hardware for an investigation exploring how microgravity and ultraviolet radiation affect plant growth. Results may enable future crews to grow crops on spacecraft for sustainment during long-term space missions.

The three cosmonauts working in the Roscosmos segment of the orbiting lab focused on imaging Earth landmarks and installing new electronics hardware. Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov once again set up a camera with a spectrometer attach       ed and photographed areas along the Mediterranean Sea in a variety of wavelengths, including Libya and Greece. Flight Engineers Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner continued installing new command and telemetry gear in the Zvezda service module that can communicate with Soyuz and Progress spacecraft, ground stations, and orbiting satellites.


Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog@space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia

Crew Preps for Thursday Spacewalk and Works Space Gardening

Crew Preps for Thursday Spacewalk and Works Space Gardening

Astronaut Suni Williams is pictured during maintenance activities inside the International Space Station's Unity module.
Astronaut Suni Williams is pictured during maintenance activities inside the International Space Station’s Unity module.

Spacewalk preparations and space gardening were the main duties aboard the International Space Station on Tuesday. The seven Expedition 72 crewmates also serviced electronics systems and packed a cargo craft for its upcoming departure.

Commander Suni Williams and Flight Engineer Butch Wilmore began their day with standard health checks required for astronauts getting ready for a spacewalk. The duo checked vital signs including temperature, blood pressure, and breathing rate then transferred the data to a tablet computer for review by doctors on the ground. Both astronauts later gathered inside the Quest airlock and continuing to gather and organize their spacewalking hardware including tethers, pistol grip tools, and other task-specific gear.

Williams and Wilmore are due to set their spacesuits to battery power at 8 a.m. EST on Thursday signifying the official start time of the second spacewalk of 2025. The two NASA astronauts will exit Quest and spend about six-and-a-half hours removing radio communications hardware and searching for microbes outside the orbital outpost. NASA+ will begin its live spacewalk coverage at 6:30 a.m.

NASA Flight Engineer Nick Hague participated in the spacewalk preparations Tuesday collecting the hardware necessary to remove the radio frequency group antenna assembly. Next, he photographed the tools Williams and Wilmore staged inside Quest for documentation. Hague wrapped up his shift reconfiguring computer network hardware then resupplying medical kits with blood tubes, needles, gloves, and more inside the Human Research Facility racks.

NASA Flight Engineer Don Pettit spent his day working on space agricultural hardware to learn how to grow food in space and sustain future crews on long-term missions to the Moon, Mars, and beyond. The four-time station visitor first watered thale cress plants growing to understand the effects of microgravity and ultraviolet radiation on plant life. Afterward, Pettit removed research components from inside the Advanced Plant Habitat that recently hosted a small crop of red lettuce that was harvested and preserved and will soon be tested for its nutritional value.

Exercise research, cargo packing, and lab maintenance topped the schedule for the cosmonauts working in the Roscosmos segment of the orbiting lab. Flight Engineer Aleksandr Gorbunov attached electrodes to himself and jogged on a treadmill for a physical fitness evaluation in the Zvezda service module. Flight Engineer Alexey Ovchinin spent his day loading trash and discarded gear inside the Progress 89 cargo craft due to depart Zvezda next month. Flight Engineer Ivan Vagner spent his day inside Zvezda installing new command and telemetry hardware that can communicate with Soyuz and Progress spacecraft, ground stations, and orbiting satellites.


Learn more about station activities by following the space station blog@space_station and @ISS_Research on X, as well as the ISS Facebook and ISS Instagram accounts.

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Mark Garcia