NASA said on August 18, 2026, that NASA astronaut Anil Menon and ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot were preparing for a spacewalk outside the International Space Station. The spacewalk was scheduled to last about six and a half hours, the agency said, and the two were to exit the station's Quest airlock to replace a Space-to-Ground antenna.

According to NASA, the antenna is a critical link used to transmit data, enabling high-speed communications between the Mission Control Center in Houston and the space station. Menon, spacewalk crew member 1, was assigned a suit with red stripes; Adenot, crew member 2, an unmarked suit. The agency said it would be the second spacewalk for Menon and the first for Adenot, who would become the first French woman to conduct a spacewalk.

NASA described the spacewalk as the 282nd in support of space station assembly, maintenance and upgrades. The agency did not report the outcome of the planned spacewalk in the material available.