Astronauts conduct spacewalk to improve Earth communication from ISS

French astronaut Sophie Adenot and American astronaut Anil Menon conducted a spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS) on Tuesday to finalize the installation of a high-speed communication antenna. This marked Adenot's second spacewalk, a significant achievement as she became the first French woman to perform such a mission last week.

The two astronauts exited the orbital laboratory around 8:35 a.m. Eastern Time, with the antenna installation expected to take approximately six and a half hours, according to NASA. Adenot, representing the European Space Agency (ESA), and Menon, from NASA, had removed a damaged antenna during their previous spacewalk but ran out of time to install its replacement.

The new antenna is crucial for high-speed data transmission, serving as a vital link between the space laboratory and the mission control center in Houston, Texas. During the spacewalk, Menon will again work from the robotic Canadarm2, while Adenot will be secured to the exterior of the ISS. Station commander Jessica Meir and flight engineer Jack Hathaway will supervise from inside, operating the robotic arm.

This spacewalk is the third and final one for the month at the ISS. Previous maintenance excursions included Menon and Meir preparing for the installation of solar panels on August 6. Such maintenance activities are routine for the orbital laboratory, which has been operational since 1998 and is scheduled to be decommissioned in 2030, with SpaceX assisting in its dismantling. The ISS has been a symbol of international collaboration, but rising maintenance costs and technological obsolescence have led to plans for private space stations to take over, allowing NASA to refocus resources on space exploration.