NASA To Send Two Astronauts On A 6.5-Hour Spacewalk Next Month — Here’s What They’ll Do

NASA has reported in a recent blog post that two of its astronauts aboard the ISS will embark on a six-and-a-half-hour spacewalk in May. This spacewalk will be to help install some modification kits on the ISS truss structure port side ahead of the installation of a new solar array.

Preparations For The Spacewalk By The Two NASA Astronauts Are In Progress

While waiting for the set date for this six-and-a-half-hour-long spacewalk, the two NASA astronauts are already getting themselves ready. This involves more than just mental preparation for the task at hand, but also physical preparation to ensure they are ready to step out of the ISS at the beginning of May.

NASA identifies the main tasks that the two astronauts will tackle during their upcoming spacewalk. The first task will be to install some modification kits to prepare the space station for the ISS’s seventh rollout solar array.

As for the second task, these astronauts will relocate an antenna that handles communications between approaching or departing commercial crew and cargo spacecraft. Taking part in this spacewalk will be female NASA astronauts, Anne McClain and Nichole Ayers.

McClain will record this as her third spacewalk, while for her partner, Ayers, this will be her first spacewalk. On 15 April 2025, the pair adjusted their spacesuits, ensuring that all elements of the spacesuit were in operational condition.

This involves ensuring that the helmets, boots, and arm and leg assemblies on the spacesuits fit together properly. Other checks on their spacesuit components, such as glove heaters, data recorders, cameras, and helmet lights, were made to ensure that all are functional.

The pair have also begun collecting the necessary tools that they will make use of during their spacewalk. While McClain and Ayers prepare for their coming spacewalk, they are still taking part in other activities aboard the ISS.

Activities Carry On Aboard The ISS Despite The Coming Spacewalk

From the official blog post announcing this coming spacewalk, NASA also pointed out some other activities being carried out on the ISS. We see that the two NASA astronauts to be part of the upcoming spacewalk are also taking part in most of these activities.

For instance, Ayers was part of the CIPHER investigation on 15 April 2025, helping NASA Flight Engineer Jonny Kim. Ayers and her partner for the coming spacewalk, Mayers, also took part in a vision test.

Some major events to take place aboard the ISS are the arrival of the SpaceX Dragon cargo craft, which will launch on 21 April 2025. NASA astronaut Don Pettit and Roscosmos cosmonauts Alexey Ovchinin and Ivan Vagner are also preparing for their return flight to Earth on 19 April 2025.
This departure will shift station command responsibilities to JAXA astronaut Takuya Onishi on 18 April 2025. Updates on the upcoming spacewalk will be available on NASA’s official website.