European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot became the first Frenchwoman to perform a spacewalk on August 18, 2026, stepping outside the International Space Station alongside NASA astronaut Anil Menon to replace a failed communications antenna during a six-hour, 23-minute excursion.
History was made in low-Earth orbit as the 97th U.S. spacewalk commenced outside the International Space Station. European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot and NASA astronaut Anil Menon ventured into the vacuum of space to tackle an essential communications repair, adjusting equipment that bridges the orbiting laboratory with mission controllers on Earth.
NASA astronaut and 1st female French spacewalker remove failed
Adenot’s venture marks a significant national milestone. She is also only the second European woman to walk in space, following Italy’s Samantha Cristoforetti in 2022, as noted by regional reporting.
The 44-year-old engineer arrived at the station in February aboard SpaceX’s Crew-12 mission. Her extensive preparation included more than 150 hours of underwater training at the European Astronaut Centre in Cologne, Germany, and NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston, Texas, where she rehearsed safety procedures, tool handling, and tether management on a full-scale model of the station.
The primary objective of the excursion was the removal and replacement of a Space-to-Ground antenna that stopped tracking NASA data relay satellites back in November. While a backup antenna maintained high-speed communications with the Mission Control Center in Houston, flight planners prioritized replacing the impaired hardware mounted on the station’s Z-1 truss.
Watch Sophie Adenot’s spacewalk live
Menon served as Extravehicular Crew Member 1 (EV1), wearing red stripes on his spacesuit, while Adenot wore an unmarked suit. Station commander Jessica Meir and flight engineer Jack Hathaway operated the Canadarm2 robotic arm from inside the outpost, maneuvering the crew and assisting with equipment stowage. Menon spent part of his work maneuvered by the robotic arm, while Adenot remained tethered to the station structure.
Although spacewalk planners allocated roughly six and a half hours for the complete swap, stubborn hardware required unexpected effort. As NASA officials reported, the crew needed more time than anticipated to disconnect electrical cables and loosen tight bolts on the assembly.
“We got into this with the mindset that we wanted everything to go perfectly,” said Menon as the spacewalk came to an end. “Things were a lot different than expected, but what I would say that I am really impressed with is that all of those contingencies were well thought out.”
Anil Menon, NASA astronaut
Flight controllers instructed the spacewalkers to secure the failed antenna to the truss with a long-duration tie-down and waive off the installation of the replacement unit. The final hookup will instead take place during a future extravehicular activity. Mission managers are evaluating whether to incorporate the remaining installation tasks into a spacewalk already scheduled for the following Tuesday.
NASA, ESA Astronauts Wrap Up Station Spacewalk
Quest airlock began. The outing lasted 6 hours and 23 minutes, bringing total time logged outside to substantial marks for both participants. For Menon, it marked his second career spacewalk in a row, following an outing on August 6 alongside Jessica Meir.
“My deepest gratitude to everyone who made this possible — the pioneers who came before us, but also the incredible teams working behind the scenes today.”
Sophie Adenot, ESA astronaut
Tuesday’s mission marked the 282nd spacewalk dedicated to station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades since the orbiting complex began operations over 25 years ago. Mission managers on Earth will review timelines in the coming days to finalize the schedule for finishing the antenna installation.
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