23 December 2008 - 20H05
- space

Space walk was just heavenly
A lack of atmosphere was no deterrent for a Russian cosmonaut and US astronaut from the International Space Station, who completed a six hour and 10 minute space walk while installing a device to monitor conditions around the orbital outpost.

AFP -  A Russian cosmonaut and a US astronaut from the International Space Station began a space walk Tuesday to install a gadget aimed at measuring electromagnetic fields around the ISS, Russian news agency RIA-Novosti reported.

It was the first space walk for Yuri Lonchakov and Michael Fincke, who arrived on the station in October aboard a Russian Soyuz rocket.

During the six hour and 10 minute walk the pair were due to instal a special gadget on the docking door of the ISS to measure electromagnetic fields around it.

Experts said the influence of such fields could have been a reason for rough landings by previous crews who had returned to Earth on Soyuz craft in April 2008 and October 2007, the agency said.
 

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