Oldest spacewoman sets spacewalking record

NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, the world's oldest female astronaut, has surpassed a spacewalking record.

The world's oldest and most experienced spacewoman has just set another record, this time for spacewalking.

NASA astronaut Peggy Whitson, 57, floated out on the eighth spacewalk of her career on Thursday morning, 400km up at the International Space Station.

That is the most spacewalks ever performed by a woman.

Whitson and her spacewalking partner, Shane Kimbrough, need to complete prep work on a docking port.

Kimbrough disconnected the port during a spacewalk last Friday.

Flight controllers in Houston moved it to a new location on Sunday.

It will serve as a parking spot for future commercial crew capsules.

Midway through Thursday's spacewalk, Whitson was to surpass the record for women of 50 hours and 40 minutes of accumulated spacewalking time.

Whitson has been in orbit since November.


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Source: AAP



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