NASA Astronauts to Conduct ISS Spacewalks in January to Install Roll-Out Solar Array

nasa Experts will preview the spacewalks in a briefing at 2 p.m. EST Tuesday, Jan. 6

BREVARD COUNTY • FLORIDA – NASA astronauts will conduct a pair of spacewalks in January outside of the International Space Station to prepare for the installation of a roll-out solar array and complete other tasks.

Experts from NASA will preview the spacewalks in a briefing at 2 p.m. EST Tuesday, Jan. 6, at NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.

Watch NASA’s live coverage of the news conference on the agency’s YouTube channel. Learn how to stream NASA contentthrough a variety of online platforms, including social media.

Participants include:

• Bill Spetch, operations integration manager, International Space Station Program
• Diana Trujillo, spacewalk flight director, Flight Operations Directorate
• Heidi Brewer, spacewalk flight director, Flight Operations Directorate

On Thursday, Jan. 8, NASA astronauts Mike Fincke and Zena Cardman will exit the station’s Quest airlock to prepare the 2A power channel for future installation of International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Arrays. Once installed, the array will provide additional power for the orbital laboratory, including critical support of its safe and controlled deorbit. This spacewalk will be Cardman’s first and Fincke’s 10th, tying him for the most spacewalks by a NASA astronaut.

On Thursday, Jan. 15, two NASA astronauts will replace a high-definition camera on camera port 3, install a new navigational aid for visiting spacecraft, called a planar reflector, on the Harmony module’s forward port, and relocate an early ammonia servicer jumper — a flexible hose assembly that connects parts of a fluid system — along with other jumpers on the station’s S6 and S4 truss.

NASA will announce the astronauts planned for the second spacewalk and start times for both events closer to the operations.

The spacewalks will be the 278th and 279th in support of space station assembly, maintenance and upgrades. They also are the first two International Space Station spacewalks of 2026, and the first by Expedition 74.

Learn more about International Space Station research and operations.

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