Shenzhou-21 astronauts install debris protection devices during first spacewalk

The Shenzhou-21 crew on board China's orbiting space station completed its first extravehicular activities on Tuesday, according to the China Manned Space Agency (CMSA).

The CMSA said the spacewalk was finished with "complete success" at 6:45 p.m. Beijing Time (1045 GMT), after approximately eight hours of operation.

Astronauts Zhang Lu and Wu Fei ventured outside the station, working in close coordination with crew member Zhang Hongzhang inside the core module and with the support of the space station's robotic arm and ground-based scientific personnel.

The crew carried out a series of high-priority tasks, including an inspection of the return capsule porthole on the previously docked Shenzhou-20 spaceship, the installation of space debris protection devices on the space station and the replacement of the insulation cover on a thermal control adapter.

Wu became the youngest Chinese astronaut to perform an extravehicular mission, while Lu conducted his second spacewalk, returning to the vacuum of space after an interval of two and a half years.

Future plans include further spacewalks, the execution of scientific experiments and technological tests, and, if deemed necessary, the implementation of protective measures on the damaged porthole of the Shenzhou-20 spacecraft.