Expedition 41 Completes First ISS Spacewalk

Astronauts Reid Wiseman of NASA and Alexander Gerst of the European Space Agency (ESA) took a casual stroll around the exterior of the International Spaces Station (ISS) yesterday performing minor repairs and one important installation - all of which occurred without a hitch.

The spacewalk was a relatively short one, lasting only about 6 hours and 13 minutes. All the while, it was live-streamed on NASA TV for the viewing pleasure of enthusiasts at home, who had the treat of watching Gerst and Wiseman grumble to themselves and crack the occasional joke as they fumbled with tools and worked to keep the ISS in tip-top shape.

Flight engineer Barry Wilmore of NASA was also remotely part of the scene, literally lending a hand via the Canadian robotic arm located on the ISS, just outside the Quest airlock where the walk occurred.

Like a great deal of these spacewalks, this one was a strange look into the life of an astronaut on the ISS, where the two seemed more like grounds keepers than intrepid explorers. However, they are still maneuvering themselves through the vast and awe-inspiring expanse of space. Things are bound to be a bit out of the ordinary. (Scroll to read on...)

Just last expedition, Russian cosmonauts were sent on a spacewalk to simply wipe the windows of the ISS - during which they made an unusual discovery. You can read more about it here.

According to NASA, an Expedition 38 spacewalk through the Quest airlock conducted not too long ago replaced a failed cooling pump. However, the failed one has been temporarily stowed in the station's truss. Now, three expeditions later, Gerst and Wiseman went to retrieve it; because you can't have junk just lying around now can you?

Wiseman then cleaned up the work area around the replace pump while Gerst walked on to go replace a light on the exterior of the Destiny laboratory module.

The pair then finally installed a Mobile Transporter Relay Assembly, improving upon the ability of the assembly to deliver supplies along the backbone of the ISS to various modules.

A second NASA/ESA spacewalk is set for Oct. 15.