Women’s Day 2019: First all-women crew to undertake spacewalk

Picture for representation (Image: NASA)

In what may soon turn into a landmark event, astronauts aboard NASA International Space Station will conduct the first all-female spacewalk on March 29. Charting history, Christine Koch and Anne McClain will start out together nearly 240 miles above the Earth. And what better time to embark on this mission than during the Women’s History Month.

McClain and Koch were both a part of NASA’s 2013 astronaut class, and women comprised nearly half of it. Additionally, McClain is also slated to go for a spacewalk on March 22 with astronaut Nick Hague.

As per a Press Herald report, NASA spokeswoman Stephanie Schierholz said: “It was not orchestrated to be this way. These spacewalks were originally scheduled to take place in the fall – they are to upgrade batteries on the space station.”

This all-female spacewalk will be the second of the three excursions planned for Expedition 59; it will be launched next week.

Schierholz also outlined the fact that the controls too would be manned by women. Mary Lawrence will be the Lead Flight Director while Jackie Kagey will take charge of the spacewalk flight controller.

However, she added that assignments and schedules are subject to change.

McClain, is a major in the US Army and a pilot. She believes she aspired to become an astronaut from the time she was barely 3-4 years of age. In a previous interview to NASA, she has said: “I remember telling my mom at that time, and I never deviated from what I wanted to become. Something about exploration has always fascinated me.”

Koch, who is an electrical engineer, will join McClain at the International Space Station on March 14, and it will be her first space flight. Although the Space is something new Koch will explore, it is not her first quest; she has been on expeditions to the South Pole and the Arctic for work before.

Speaking on incidentally being able to make history on Women’s History Month, Koch had said: “It is a unique opportunity and I hope I’m be able to inspire folks that might be watching.”

A strong believer in following one’s passion regardless of the background, the native of North Carolina has not seen many engineers to look up to as role models during the formative years of her career. So, she hopes to set the right example for someone who may regard her a mentor. She said: “If that’s a role I can serve, it would be my honour.”

In 1963, Valentina Tereshkova, a citizen of Russia, became the first woman to fly in space. Then on, 59 women have flown into space, according to NASA.