NASA Astronaut Chris Williams Returns to Earth


Editor’s Note: This advisory was updated on Aug. 10, 2026, to reflect the assigned crew members and coverage times for U.S. spacewalk 97, scheduled to take place on Tuesday, Aug. 18.
Editor’s Note: The advisory was updated on Aug. 7, 2026, with a date change for U.S. spacewalk 97, which is now scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 18. Read more on the International Space Station blog.
Editor’s note: This media advisory was updated July 27, 2026 to reflect an updated start time for the spacewalk on Thursday, Aug. 6.
NASA will provide coverage as astronauts venture outside the International Space Station during three spacewalks in August to continue upgrading solar arrays, replace a communications antenna, and connect power and data cables in support of space station operations.
Experts will preview the upcoming spacewalks during a news conference at 2 p.m. EDT, Thursday, July 30, from NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
NASA will stream these events through a variety of platforms. Learn where to watch online:
NASA participants in the news conference include:
United States-based media interested in attending in person must contact the Johnson newsroom no later than 3 p.m., Wednesday, July 29, at jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov. Media joining by phone should request dial-in details by the same deadline. To ask a question, media must dial in no later than 15 minutes before the start of the news conference.
Thursday, Aug. 6
NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Anil Menon will exit the Quest airlock to install hardware that will modify the station’s 3B power channel and prepare it for the future installation of an International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Array (IROSA). The solar array, scheduled for delivery later this year, will be the seventh IROSA and will provide additional power to support critical station operations, including its safe and controlled deorbit.
Watch NASA’s live coverage of U.S. spacewalk 96 beginning at 7 a.m. The spacewalk is expected to start at 8:35 a.m. and last about six and a half hours.
This spacewalk will be the sixth for Meir and the first for Menon. Meir will serve as spacewalk crew member 1 and will wear a suit with red stripes. Menon will serve as crew member 2 and will wear an unmarked suit.
Tuesday, Aug. 18
During U.S. spacewalk 97, NASA astronaut Anil Menon and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Sophie Adenot will exit the station’s Quest airlock to replace a Space-to-Ground antenna on the orbital complex. The antenna is a critical communications link NASA uses to transmit data, enabling high-speed communications between the Mission Control Center in Houston and the space station.
Watch NASA’s live coverage beginning at 7 a.m. The spacewalk is expected to start at approximately 8:35 a.m. and last about six and a half hours.
Menon will serve as spacewalk crew member 1, and Adenot will serve as crew member 2. The spacewalk will be Menon’s second and Adenot’s first. Adenot will become the first French woman to conduct a spacewalk.
Tuesday, Aug. 25
The U.S. spacewalk 98 crew members will connect power channel cables and data relay systems as part of ongoing maintenance, including preparations for the space station’s future deorbit. The astronauts also will replace a navigational aid used for spacecraft docking on the Harmony module’s forward port.
NASA will share additional details about U.S. spacewalk 98, including timing, assigned crew members, and coverage information, closer to the operation.
The spacewalks will be the 281st, 282nd, and 283rd conducted in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.
To learn more about International Space Station research, operations, and its crews, visit:
-end-
Joshua Finch / Jimi Russell
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov
Sandra Jones / Anna Schneider
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov / anna.c.schneider@nasa.gov
Editor’s Note: This advisory was updated on Aug. 10, 2026, to reflect the assigned crew members and coverage times for U.S. spacewalk 97, scheduled to take place on Tuesday, Aug. 18.
Editor’s Note: The advisory was updated on Aug. 7, 2026, with a date change for U.S. spacewalk 97, which is now scheduled for Tuesday, Aug. 18. Read more on the International Space Station blog.
Editor’s note: This media advisory was updated July 27, 2026 to reflect an updated start time for the spacewalk on Thursday, Aug. 6.
NASA will provide coverage as astronauts venture outside the International Space Station during three spacewalks in August to continue upgrading solar arrays, replace a communications antenna, and connect power and data cables in support of space station operations.
Experts will preview the upcoming spacewalks during a news conference at 2 p.m. EDT, Thursday, July 30, from NASA’s Johnson Space Center in Houston.
NASA will stream these events through a variety of platforms. Learn where to watch online:
NASA participants in the news conference include:
United States-based media interested in attending in person must contact the Johnson newsroom no later than 3 p.m., Wednesday, July 29, at jsccommu@mail.nasa.gov. Media joining by phone should request dial-in details by the same deadline. To ask a question, media must dial in no later than 15 minutes before the start of the news conference.
Thursday, Aug. 6
NASA astronauts Jessica Meir and Anil Menon will exit the Quest airlock to install hardware that will modify the station’s 3B power channel and prepare it for the future installation of an International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Array (IROSA). The solar array, scheduled for delivery later this year, will be the seventh IROSA and will provide additional power to support critical station operations, including its safe and controlled deorbit.
Watch NASA’s live coverage of U.S. spacewalk 96 beginning at 7 a.m. The spacewalk is expected to start at 8:35 a.m. and last about six and a half hours.
This spacewalk will be the sixth for Meir and the first for Menon. Meir will serve as spacewalk crew member 1 and will wear a suit with red stripes. Menon will serve as crew member 2 and will wear an unmarked suit.
Tuesday, Aug. 18
During U.S. spacewalk 97, NASA astronaut Anil Menon and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Sophie Adenot will exit the station’s Quest airlock to replace a Space-to-Ground antenna on the orbital complex. The antenna is a critical communications link NASA uses to transmit data, enabling high-speed communications between the Mission Control Center in Houston and the space station.
Watch NASA’s live coverage beginning at 7 a.m. The spacewalk is expected to start at approximately 8:35 a.m. and last about six and a half hours.
Menon will serve as spacewalk crew member 1, and Adenot will serve as crew member 2. The spacewalk will be Menon’s second and Adenot’s first. Adenot will become the first French woman to conduct a spacewalk.
Tuesday, Aug. 25
The U.S. spacewalk 98 crew members will connect power channel cables and data relay systems as part of ongoing maintenance, including preparations for the space station’s future deorbit. The astronauts also will replace a navigational aid used for spacecraft docking on the Harmony module’s forward port.
NASA will share additional details about U.S. spacewalk 98, including timing, assigned crew members, and coverage information, closer to the operation.
The spacewalks will be the 281st, 282nd, and 283rd conducted in support of space station assembly, maintenance, and upgrades.
To learn more about International Space Station research, operations, and its crews, visit:
-end-
Joshua Finch / Jimi Russell
Headquarters, Washington
202-358-1100
joshua.a.finch@nasa.gov / james.j.russell@nasa.gov
Sandra Jones / Anna Schneider
Johnson Space Center, Houston
281-483-5111
sandra.p.jones@nasa.gov / anna.c.schneider@nasa.gov