Maintenance in Low Earth Orbit
NASA astronaut Jessica Meir and European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot completed a six-hour and 49-minute spacewalk on Tuesday, September 1, 2026. The objective centered on critical maintenance for the International Space Station, marking the sixth all-female extravehicular activity in the history of human spaceflight. The two astronauts began their work from the U.S. Quest airlock at 8:40 a.m. EDT to secure the future of docking operations.
The primary task involved replacing the planar deflector on the forward port of the station's Harmony Node 2. This device acts as a navigational aid for incoming spacecraft. Over time, the previous reflector had accumulated significant thruster residue from various visiting vehicles, obscuring its function. The team successfully installed the new unit to ensure clear guidance for future docking arrivals.
Technical Challenges and Camera Upgrades
Beyond the docking aid, the crew focused on station utility. They replaced the Camera Port 3 high-definition camera located on the station’s truss structure. As the assembly was swapped, Mission Control at the Johnson Space Center in Houston confirmed the successful removal, with Meir announcing, "And it's off!" to the flight controllers on the ground.
But the mission faced a sudden hurdle near the end of the scheduled tasks. Adenot reported a loss of mobility in her left shoulder joint. Mission Control instructed her to remain in place as a precaution. Meir navigated back to her partner to provide assistance. She opened a section of the upper arm assembly on the extravehicular mobility unit to find the source of the trouble. A piece of cable had become trapped between the shoulder insulation and the rotation joint. Meir cleared the obstruction, allowing Adenot to move freely once more.
Scientific Research and Long-term Implications
The mission agenda extended past hardware repairs. Adenot conducted scientific research by swabbing surfaces on the exterior of the airlock and her own gloves. This process helps track how microorganisms interact with the station environment. Meanwhile, Meir moved to the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer to manage 46 specific bolts. This preparation is a required step for upcoming maintenance on the particle physics detector.
Meir also relocated power and thermal jumper cables, along with a portable foot restraint, to prepare the station for a future spacewalk. These efforts are part of the ongoing assembly and maintenance of the station, which has now seen 284 individual spacewalks. This specific mission stands as the seventh spacewalk of 2026 and the fifth for the Expedition 75 crew.
Meir concludes this event with 49 hours and 22 minutes of total spacewalk time, placing her third among all NASA women for total time spent on extravehicular activities. Adenot, with her third career spacewalk, now holds a total of 19 hours and 42 minutes in the vacuum of space. The two successfully returned to the airlock at 4:29 p.m. EDT, concluding a productive day of orbital labor.