Actual history was made on October 18th, at 7:50 a.m. Christina Koch and Jessica Meir teamed up for a spacewalk on the International Space Station, performing the first all-female spacewalk in recorded history. For those who don’t know, NASA defines a spacewalk as any sort of work session that involves an astronaut leaving their vehicle while in space. It could consist of science experiments or repairing equipment. Rather than fly back down to Earth to make repairs, scientists can more efficiently do them in space.
This particular spacewalk’s goal was to replace a faulty battery unit that prevented the batteries from providing more power to the station. It was a crucial step for continuing NASA spacewalks, and the two women accomplished the task without any issues.
This wasn’t the first time NASA attempted to perform an all-female spacewalk. Just last spring, NASA had another one scheduled and was almost ready to go. At the last minute, they realized they didn’t have enough space suits in the right sizes in the International Space Station, so they had to postpone.
People on social media showered this historic moment with praise. In particular, they often noted how deeply inspirational it was for young girls to see two capable, powerful women casually making history. This was an experience no one would ever forget.
My daughter watching today's space walk. I told her that "2 girls are fixing the rocket ship"
— Toot, Scoot N Boogie 🤠 (@Taunte_K) October 18, 2019
She got really excited and said "That's me!"#NASA #AllWomanSpacewalk pic.twitter.com/uyeA3rjs09
Experiencing extreme weightless, curly hair jealousy right now. 😭 #AllWomanSpacewalk pic.twitter.com/GF6bIbumLK
— Dr. Karen James (@kejames) October 18, 2019
No word yet on what Koch and Weir’s next mission will be, but they are bound to continue making history in whatever they do. This long overdue NASA moment will surely be the first of many all-female astronaut teams, so be on the lookout for more stunningly awesome female astronauts making headlines across the world.