WASHINGTON — In a major technical milestone for orbital laboratory maintenance, NASA astronauts Anil Menon and Jessica Meir successfully completed a six-hour and 27-minute extravehicular activity (EVA) outside the International Space Station (ISS) to perform critical power grid upgrades.

The spacewalk, which marked the 281st conducted in support of space station assembly and maintenance, began at 8:33 a.m. EDT (6:03 p.m. IST) on Thursday when the duo stepped out of the Quest airlock. By the time they wrapped up operations at 3:00 p.m. EDT (12:30 a.m. IST Friday), the astronauts had completed all primary objectives needed to accommodate the station's next-generation solar hardware.

Preparing for Next-Gen Solar Power

The primary focus of the operation took place along the station’s Starboard 6 truss segment, where Menon and Meir installed structural mounting hardware onto the 3B power channel. The modification kit serves as the foundation for the future installation of an International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Array (IROSA).

Once deployed, these roll-out arrays will augment the station's existing power generation capability, providing crucial energy required to sustain ongoing scientific experiments and support preparations for the station's eventual, controlled deorbit operations.

During the mission, Indian-origin astronaut Anil Menon, executing his first career spacewalk, anchored himself onto an articulating portable foot restraint. Positioned on the worksite interface, Menon worked alongside Meir to route power cables that will transfer electricity from the upcoming IROSA system directly into the 3B channel. The crew completed the task by insulating the newly configured structural struts with multi-layer thermal covers.

Moments of Reflection Above Earth

Despite a rigorous workload, the crew managed a brief moment to take in the view from 250 miles above Earth.

"Anil, you can see the Moon to the — well, I am not sure what way you're facing, but…," noted Meir during a short operational pause.

"To my right. Yeah, I see it — thanks for the heads-up. I can see a future Moon base there," Menon replied, making a nod to humanity's next frontier in space exploration.

The excursion was the sixth spacewalk for veteran astronaut Jessica Meir and the first for Menon, a flight surgeon turned astronaut who joined NASA’s corps in 2021.

More Spacewalks Scheduled for Expedition 75

This operation represented the first of three spacewalks planned for the station's Expedition 75 crew this month.

  • August 13: A second spacewalk will focus on swapping out a Space-to-Ground antenna system. The antenna serves as a vital communications link transmitting critical flight telemetry and high-speed data between the orbiting station and Mission Control in Houston.

  • August 25: A third spacewalk will focus on routing additional power and data relay cables for long-term maintenance, alongside replacing a navigational docking aid on the Harmony module's forward port.