Two NASA astronauts stepped out into the void of space Wednesday to perform some maintenance on the International Space Station, marking their first spacewalk.
Kjell Lindgren and yearlong Space Station crewmember Scott Kelly completed their spacewalk Wednesday at 3:19 p.m. ET after a grueling seven hours and 16 minutes of work outside the orbiting laboratory.
During the spacewalk, the two Americans did some work to prepare for the installation of a docking adaptor that will allow Boeing's Starliner and SpaceX's Crewed Dragon to attach to the Space Station once they begin flying astronauts to the outpost in the not-too-distant future.
The astronauts also installed a thermal cover onto the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer -- a particle physics experiment -- on the outside of the station. In addition, they lubricated the end of the station's robotic arm with grease.
This spacewalk was the first of two extra-vehicular activities the two astronauts will embark on in the next week. Lindgren and Kelly will again venture outside the station on Nov. 6.
Space agencies, the astronauts' fellow crewmembers and space enthusiasts kept an eye on the astronauts using cameras on the outside of the Space Station and helmet cameras used by the spacewalkers.
.@Astro_Kjell routing power & data cables to ready @Space_Station for future @Commercial_Crew vehicle docking port. pic.twitter.com/GwH9IN3DnB— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) October 28, 2015
.@Astro_Kjell is seen inside the airlock from the helmet cam of @StationCDRKelly as they wrap up #spacewalk. pic.twitter.com/wMonK1LYaT— Intl. Space Station (@Space_Station) October 28, 2015
@StationCDRKelly goes on #spacewalk outside the #ISS // Скотт Келли выходит на "прогулку" в открытый космос pic.twitter.com/nWMg7MnmEW— Sergey Volkov (@Volkov_ISS) October 28, 2015
Aloha from 250 miles over Hawaii. Scott Kelly wrapping up work on lubricating robot arm end effector. pic.twitter.com/HyDY11viR1— Stephen Clark (@StephenClark1) October 28, 2015
Hello, tiny human. @StationCDRKelly #Canadarm2 #ISS pic.twitter.com/EiuGMa2VwY— CanadianSpaceAgency (@csa_asc) October 28, 2015
Another astronaut, Doug Wheelock, answered questions from space fans on Twitter during the spacewalk.
The sensation of flying, falling & floating are all possible depending on body orientation & position. @michaelhilva @Space_Station #askNASA— Douglas H. Wheelock (@Astro_Wheels) October 28, 2015
During a spacewalk, the Astronauts are 'hot mic'...so during tough moments, we teach them to find a 'happy place'. @HayleyFick #askNASA— Douglas H. Wheelock (@Astro_Wheels) October 28, 2015
The ISS is not stationary! Its 'attitude' is stable, but it is orbiting at 17,500 mph! One orbit every ~90 minutes! @Dirk_vd_Merwe #askNASA— Douglas H. Wheelock (@Astro_Wheels) October 28, 2015
And let's just say that some other social media users took a bit of an existential turn when posting about the spacewalk.
Every walk is a space walk because everything is in space. #spacewalktowork— SarcasticRover (@SarcasticRover) October 28, 2015