NASA astronauts Anne McClain and Christina Koch to carry out first ever all-female spacewalk
For the first time ever, NASA has scheduled an all-female spacewalk on March 29th, with astronauts Anne McClaine and Christina Koch. The historic mission is part of NASA's Expedition 59.
In July 1984, Soviet cosmonaut Svetlana Savitskaya became the first woman to walk in space. Nearly 35 years later, NASA astronauts Annie McClain and Christina Koch are all set to create history once again by conducting the first ever all-female spacewalk that NASA has scheduled for March 29th, through Expedition 59. They will be travelling in the Soyuz MS-12 spaceflight, along with fellow astronaut Tyler ‘Nick’ Hague.
According to NASA, a spacewalk is a period of time, typically lasting between five to eight hours, when an astronaut steps outside their vehicle while in space, conducts experiments and tests out new equipment. However, the duration of this all-female spacewalk is currently unknown.
Canadian Space Agency flight controller Kristen Facciol will be on console, supporting McClain and Koch during their mission. Facciol made her announcement on March 1st via Twitter, expressing her excitement.
Both McClain and Koch were selected by NASA to be astronauts in 2013. This will be McClain’s first time in space, and Koch’s first spaceflight. McClain is also part of the Expedition 58 that launched back in December 2018, while Koch will be serving as flight engineer for both Expedition 59 and Expedition 60, which will launch later this year. McClain will also be taking part in an earlier spacewalk on March 22nd with Hague.
As of December 2018, there have been a total of 213 spacewalks at the International Space Station.