ISS cosmonauts successfully complete spacewalk

Washington, Aug 11:

Two Russian cosmonauts serving aboard the International Space Station completed a spacewalk without incident, NASA said.

Expedition 44 Commander Gennady Padalka and Flight Engineer Mikhail Kornienko on Monday spent 5 hours, 31 minutes outside the craft engaged in tasks such as cleaning the station’s windows, installing a new antenna and completed a detailed photographic survey of the ISS exterior, reports Efe.

The cosmonauts also installed “devices called gap spanners on the hull of the station that will facilitate the movement of crew members on future spacewalks,” NASA said.

Padalka, 57, was making his ninth spacewalk, while it was the second excursion for the 55-year-old Kornienko.

Monitoring the walk from inside the craft were Russia’s Oleg Kononenko, NASA astronauts Scott Kelly and Kjell Lindgren and Kimiya Yui of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency. (IANS)