A supposed to be historic all-female spacewalk by U.S.' National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) has been canceled at the last minute due to unavailability of outfits for the female astronauts.
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Till now, NASA, the United States space agency, has conducted 214 spacewalks with only male or male-female teams. But this Friday’s spacewalk would have changed that if Christina Koch and Anne McClain have done it together led by another woman, Kristen Facciol from earth.
They were supposed to get out of the International Space Station (ISS) and swap some batteries on some of the station’s solar panels.
But the ISS lacks outfits that will fit both the astronauts. Now, instead of McClain, Nick Hague, a male astronaut will go for the spacewalk.
It was discovered that both McClain and Koch needed medium-size outfits but only one could have been made ready.
"Because only one medium-size torso can be made ready by Friday, March 29, Koch will wear it," NASA said.
A configuration takes time and very labor intensive as it has to properly fit the astronaut and it is also about the worker’s safety as the work they will embark on a task that will require them to be out in the space for seven hours.
McClain will do the spacewalk with another male colleague, David Saint-Jacques on April 8.
Till now only 11 percent of women have been to space and people were looking forward to this event.
No other all-female spacewalk has been scheduled yet.