Sophie Adenot Becomes First French Woman to Conduct Spacewalk Outside ISS

Sophie Adenot became the first French woman to conduct a spacewalk after exiting the International Space Station on Tuesday.

The European Space Agency astronaut ventured outside the orbiting laboratory to perform maintenance and preparation work on the station’s exterior.

Historic Spacewalk

Adenot’s extravehicular activity marks another milestone for France’s space program.

She is the second French woman to travel into space, following Claudie Haigneré, but the first to leave a spacecraft and work in the vacuum of space.

Sophie Adenot’s ISS Mission

The 44-year-old astronaut reached the ISS in February aboard SpaceX’s Crew-12 mission.

During her long-duration mission, Adenot is participating in scientific experiments, station maintenance and research intended to support future human missions beyond Earth.