LIVE: Historic Space Walk 97: France’s First Female Spacewalker and NASA Antenna Upgrades

Video footage shows live coverage of U.S. Spacewalk 97 on Aug. 18 from the International Space Station, where astronauts are working outside the orbital complex to perform critical hardware upgrades.

During this 6.5-hour orbital mission, NASA astronaut Anil Menon and European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot exit the station's Quest airlock to replace an aging space-to-ground antenna. This high-speed communications antenna serves as a vital data link, transmitting telemetry, video, and scientific data between the space station and the Mission Control Center in Houston.

Operating 250 miles above Earth, Menon serves as extravehicular crew member 1 and Adenot serves as extravehicular crew member 2. This mission marks a historic milestone in space exploration as Adenot becomes the first French woman to ever conduct a spacewalk.

The video feed captures the live helmet-cam angles, external station cameras, and official mission audio as the crew detaches the old antenna structure, installs the replacement unit, and routes the necessary power and data connections.

Mission Timeline:

7 a.m. ET: Live broadcast coverage begins (pre-flight checks and suit pressurization)

8:35 a.m. ET: Hatch opens and spacewalk officially begins (astronauts switch to internal spacesuit battery power)

8:35 a.m. – 2:30 p.m. ET: Core extravehicular operations (antenna removal, replacement unit installation, and cable routing)

2:30 p.m. – 3 p.m. ET: Tool cleanup, final inspections, and airlock ingress

3:05 p.m. ET: Hatch closes and spacewalk ends (re-pressurization of the Quest airlock)