What are the Most Memorable NASA Spacewalks?

(Before It's News)

Bruce McCandless testing out the ultimate jetpack during STS-41B in February 1984. Credit: NASA

The official name is “extra-vehicular activity,” (EVA) but most of us like to call it a spacewalk. However, when you think about it, you don’t really walk in space. You float.

Or more properly speaking, clutch on to handlebars as you make your way from spot to spot on your spacecraft as you race against the clock to finish your repair or whatever outdoor tasks you were assigned. But hey, the view more than makes up for the hard work.

Some astronauts actually got to fly during their time “outside.” During STS-41B 29 years ago this month, Bruce McCandless was the first one to strap on a jetpack and, in science fiction style, float a little distance away from the shuttle.

He called his test of the manned maneuvering unit “a heck of a big leap”. Nearly 20 years after the fact, it still looks like a gutsy move.

What other memorable floating NASA spacewalks have we seen during the space age? Here are some examples:
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© Elizabeth Howell for Universe Today, 2013. |
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Post tags: bruce mccandless, Ed White, EVA, gemini 4, gemini 9, pierre thuot, scott parazynski, Spacewaks, sts-41b, sts-49

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