NASA Astronaut Peggy Whitson makes history, breaks record for most spacewalks by a woman!

Whitson along with Expedition 50 Commander Shane Kimbrough of NASA will reconnect the cables and electrical connections on PMA-3 at its new home on top Harmony.

New Delhi: As she floated outside the International Space Station (ISS) to commence her spacewalk (eighth of her career) on Thursday, Expedition 50 Flight Engineer and astronaut Peggy Whitson broke the record for the most spacewalks conducted by a woman.

With this achievement, Whitson has surpassed astronaut Sunita Williams' record for most spacewalks by a female spacewoman.

Whitson along with Expedition 50 Commander Shane Kimbrough of NASA are in the process of reconnecting the cables and electrical connections on PMA-3 at its new home on top Harmony.

The two astronauts will also install the second of the two upgraded computer relay boxes on the station’s truss and install shields and covers on PMA-3 and the now-vacant common berthing mechanism port on Tranquility.

NASA is live streaming the six-and-a-half hour spacewalk online and you can Watch it HERE. Also, NASA TV is providing complete coverage of the spacewalk which began at 8 am EDT, Thursday.

This will be the 199th spacewalk in support of space station assembly and maintenance.

The spacewalk is Kimbrough’s sixth of his career and Whitson's eighth – more than any other female astronaut.

A third spacewalk is scheduled for Thursday, April 6.