Summary

  • British astronaut Tim Peake completed his first spacewalk at 17:31 GMT on Friday 15 January after nearly five hours in space

  • Intended to be longer than six hours, the walk was cut short after his US colleague Tim Kopra reported water in his helmet

  • The duo successfully completed their main job, replacing a faulty unit that regulates power from the station's solar panels

  • Other scheduled work, including routing many metres of cables for new docking ports, was left for future spacewalks

  • Major Tim is currently on a six-month mission to the space station for the European Space Agency

  1. The moment the spacewalk was called offpublished at 18:48

    This is the moment today's spacewalk was cut short, due to a water bubble in Tim Kopra's helmet.

    It was just before 17:00 GMT - four hours and 10 minutes into the space walk.

    Quote Message

    Guys, you can start opening your cuff checklists to page seven; we are in a terminate case.

    Mission Control

  2. Checks underway on spacesuitspublished at 18:41

    Mission controllers are gathering evidence on what might have caused the bubble of water inside Tim Kopra's helmet.

    Station commander Scott Kelly is helping the astronauts inside the equipment room of the ISS.

    Tim Kopra's suit and helmet will be carefully analysed.

    The temperature of the water is one clue - cold water suggests it came from some sort of leak inside the space suit, rather than sweat or condensation.

  3. Recap: Highlights of Tim Peake's spacewalkpublished at 18:36 Greenwich Mean Time 15 January 2016

    Watch highlights of the two Tims' first task, repairing a solar power unit.

  4. Send us your views: 'Magical moment'published at 18:28

    BBC Science News on Facebook

    Lindsey Ann comments on our Facebook page, external:

    My class came back in at lunchtime to continue watching it, so that they didn't miss the moment history was made! A once in a lifetime awe-inspiring magical moment!

    And this from Brian Brian, earlier today:

    It's amazing how they're going over 17,000mph and it just looks like they're just drifting.

  5. End of a long day - sharing a chat and a smilepublished at 18:24

    Spacewalkers and crew inside the space stationImage source, NASA
    Image caption,

    Station commander Scott Kelly removes Tim Peake's helmet...

    Spacewalkers and crew inside the space stationImage source, NASA
    Image caption,

    ...and then Tim Kopra (left) and Tim Peake (far right) exchange a few friendly words after returning from today's spacewalk

  6. Add to the debate: budding scientistspublished at 18:22 Greenwich Mean Time 15 January 2016

    Email: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

    Amazing to watch with my two budding scientists Emily and Issy aged 12 and 10.

    Sarah, Stratford Upon Avon

  7. Astronauts safely back insidepublished at 18:21

    Both Tim Peake and Tim Kopra are inside the space station, in the equipment room, with their helmets removed.

    "All's well that ends well," said mission commentator Rob Navias.

    He said it was a "safe and successful end" to the spacewalk, if a bit early.

    Meanwhile, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano - who also suffered a water leak in his helmet on a spacewalk in 2013 - has tweeted his congratulations.

  8. Pictures: Tim Kopra back in the space stationpublished at 18:06

    The crew managed to withdraw 15 ml of water from Tim Kopra's helmet with a syringe.

    The space station crew is now helping him out of his suit.

    Crew members help Tim Kopra out of his helmetImage source, NASA
    Image caption,

    Fellow crew members help Tim Kopra out of his helmet

    Tim Kopra seen from aboveImage source, NASA
    Image caption,

    Slightly damp but safe and sound: Tim Kopra back in the space station

  9. Send your reaction: An inspiration to allpublished at 18:05

    Email: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

    Congratulations to Tim Peake, his ambition achieved and job done!! This man is an inspiration to all young people and older. He is a champion of mine, he fits what I call 'old school'.

    Ellis Hart

  10. Send us your reaction: Amazing and brilliantpublished at 18:05 Greenwich Mean Time 15 January 2016

    Email: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

    Ground control to Major Tim – had a brilliant time watching the space walk LIVE on the BBC – amazing and thrilling.    

    Karen Bedford

  11. Careful process of de-suiting and keeping evidencepublished at 17:57

    The inner door of the airlock is now open.

    Back inside the space station, Tim Kopra is being assisted out of his suit.

    There is no live TV coverage at the moment, but we can hear instructions being issued - including a request to collect some of the troublesome water with a syringe for later analysis.

  12. Send us your comments: An emotional experiencepublished at 17:56

    Email: haveyoursay@bbc.co.uk

    Absolutely superb coverage - awesome that we can watch this down here on earth.  I feel so privileged - and a bit emotional!

    Heather Thomas

  13. Astronauts thank ground control for "dedication and hard work"published at 17:46

    Both Tim Kopra and Tim Peake voiced their thanks to the mission controllers as they waited for the pressure in the airlock to equalise. 

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    Although not all the jobs on the list were completed, the two Tims did manage to restore full power to the ISS when they replaced the "sequential shunt unit" just before 15:00 GMT.

  14. Add to the debate: making pizzapublished at 17:46 Greenwich Mean Time 15 January 2016

    Text: +44 7624 800 100

     Amazing! My 10 yr old son and I are making pizza dough whilst watching the space walk AND listening to Hunky Dory by David Bowie too.  

    Jackie Barker & Sam Napier   

  15. Spacewalk officially ends at 17:31 GMTpublished at 17:32
    Breaking

    The airlock is being repressurised now, which denotes the official end of the spacewalk, according to Nasa - after four hours and 43 minutes.

  16. Astronauts prepare to go back inside ISSpublished at 17:30

    The two Tims, safely inside the airlock, are now running through checks and closing the hatch behind them.

    Their colleagues on the space station are waiting on the other side of the inner door, to help them out of their space suits.

  17. Both astronauts are back inside the airlockpublished at 17:25

    Tim Peake and Tim Kopra are now both inside the airlock. This image shows the thermal cover closed behind them; the hatch itself still needs to be shut.

    airlock entrance with a cover on itImage source, Nasa
  18. Astronauts reach airlockpublished at 17:24 Greenwich Mean Time 15 January 2016

    The European Space Agency says Tim Peake is entering the airlock to join his colleague Tim Kopra.

  19. Not the first experience of a water leak in a spacesuitpublished at 17:21

    Helen Briggs
    BBC News

    Space controllers are taking no chances after an incident in 2013 when Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano discovered his helmet was starting to fill with water during a spacewalk.

    His ventilation system had sprung a leak. Liquid doesn't flow under microgravity, so the water sat in his helmet, forcing him to cut short his spacewalk.

    "I started going back to the airlock and the water kept trickling," Parmitano has said.

    "It completely covered my eyes and my nose. It was really hard to see. I couldn't hear anything. It was really hard to communicate.

    "I couldn't breathe through my nose - I felt isolated and when I tried to tell ground that I was having trouble finding my way, they couldn't hear me, and I couldn't hear them either.

    "Instead of focussing on the problem - which was I may drown with the next gulp of air - I started thinking about solutions."

    Parmitano gradually felt his way back to the airlock and made it safely back inside.