Sophie Adenot and Anil Menon to complete ISS antenna installation

ESA flight engineer Sophie Adenot and NASA flight engineer Anil Menon are scheduled to conduct a spacewalk on Tuesday, August 25, to complete the installation of a high-speed communication antenna on the International Space Station (ISS). The mission aims to replace a failed antenna on the Z1 truss segment to enhance data transmission capabilities between the orbital laboratory and ground control.

This operation follows a previous spacewalk on August 18, which was interrupted due to time constraints. During the upcoming mission, Menon is expected to use the Canadarm2 robotic arm to retrieve a spare antenna, which Adenot will release from an external platform for installation. If time permits, the crew may also attempt to replace a retroreflector on the Harmony module to improve navigation data for visiting spacecraft.

The spacewalk is expected to last approximately six and a half hours. Following the mission, the crew will continue various microgravity research projects, including the Venus Flow investigation, which studies the effects of spaceflight on the human circulatory system.