Indian-origin American astronaut Sunita Williams will once again perform a spacewalk on January 16 during her mission on the International Space Station (ISS). This spacewalk will be six and a half hours long and NASA astronaut Nick Hague will also join him.
Spacewalk after 12 years
Sunita Williams last did a spacewalk 12 years ago. This time she will work on repairing NASA’s NICER X-ray telescope and updating the Canadarm-2 robotic arm. NASA has shared pictures of the preparations for this historic spacewalk, in which Sunita and Nick are shown doing the fitness test of their spacesuits inside the space station.
Live broadcast of spacewalk
NASA has announced live telecast of this spacewalk. According to Indian time, this spacewalk will start on January 16 at 6:30 pm. After this, there will be another spacewalk on January 23, which will start at 6:45 pm Indian time. It can be seen on NASA’s social media accounts and official platforms.
What is spacewalk?
A spacewalk is the process when astronauts leave the space station to conduct experiments, repairs, or other tasks. This is of utmost importance to NASA and other space agencies, as it helps maintain equipment functionality and meet mission objectives.
Reason for delay in mission
Sunita Williams and her fellow astronaut Butch Wilmore had arrived in space on June 5 and were to return within a week. However, their return was delayed due to a technical glitch with the Starliner spacecraft. NASA has extended the mission to March or April, considering the spacecraft unsafe for return.
New achievement of NASA and Sunita
This spacewalk is not only another milestone in Sunita Williams’ career but also an important step in space exploration. NASA has expressed its curiosity about this and said that this mission will reach new heights in the field of space research.
