Watch live: first space steps for Matthias

Matthias and his spacewalking partner, NASA astronaut Raja Chari, will exit the airlock at around 13:50 CET (12:50 GMT). Matthias will be extravehicular crew member two (EV 2), in a suit with no stripes. Raja, as lead spacewalker (EV 1), will wear a suit with red stripes. 

Once outside, Matthias and Raja will spend around six and a half hours working on a series of tasks. These include installing hoses on a radiator beam valve module that helps regulate Space Station system temperatures, replacing an external camera on the Station’s truss and installing a power and data cable on the Bartolomeo commercial platform outside ESA’s Columbus module.

Matthias on his upcoming spacewalk | Cosmic Kiss
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Bartolomeo is the first European commercial facility to be positioned outside the International Space Station. Built and operated by Airbus, it will offer a high-speed data feed and a unique view of Earth and deep space.

The data and power cable that Matthias is set to install during this spacewalk is the final step in connecting Bartolomeo, ready for full operations.

Matthias has been living and working in orbit since 11 November 2021 for an ESA mission known as Cosmic Kiss. During his time on the Space Station, he is supporting over 35 European and many more international experiments in microgravity.

He is expected to return to Earth with Crew-3 in their SpaceX Crew Dragon spacecraft in the second half of April 2022.

Find out more about Matthias and Cosmic Kiss on the ESA mission page and tune in to ESA Web TV channel 2 on Wednesday 23 March for full spacewalk coverage.