The Conversation
NASA's First All-Female Spacewalk Happening Right Now
The famous quote from Neil Armstrong will need to be updated since NASA has launched its first all-female spacewalk.
That's one small step for a woman, one giant leap for womankind.
The walk was originally set for earlier this year, but was cancelled due to the spacesuits not being the right size for the female astronauts. The second attempt will be made by Jessica Meir and Christina Koch, who are tasked to replace a broken battery charger outside of the International Space Station.
The two women spoke to reporters about their upcoming walk from a video taken at the space station. "We don't even really think about it on a daily basis," Meier said about the fact that it's the first all-female assignment. "It's just normal. We're part of the team. It's really nice to see how far we've come."
The first woman to take part in a spacewalk was Russian cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya in 1984. Since then, only 13 other women have participated in walks alongside their male colleagues. While Koch has already completed three spacewalks, it will be the first walk for Meier.
In addition to the milestone of being part of the first all-woman spacewalk, Koch is set to break the record for the longest single spaceflight by a woman. She's currently scheduled for a 328-day orbit, which would beat former NASA alum Peggy Whitson's record of 288 straight days in space.
NASA TV and NASA.GOV/LIVE are live streaming the walk on Friday, October 17 th starting at 8:50 AM Eastern. Be sure to tune in!
(Source: images @Astro_Christina )
