NASA astronauts complete spacewalk outside space station

James Dean | Florida Today

MELBOURNE, Fla. — A pair of NASA astronauts completed a spacewalk Monday that lasted three hours and 16 minutes.

Scott Kelly and Tim Kopra began the spacewalk at 7:45 a.m. Eastern and finished it at 11:01 a.m. They successfully helped latch a rail car into place before a Russian cargo spacecraft docks at the International Space Station early Wednesday.

They moved the rail car the four inches it needed to slide to reach a latching point.

"That's one small step for a Mobile Transporter," said NASA TV commentator Rob Navias.

With their primary objective completed well ahead of schedule, the spacewalkers proceeded to route a series of cables that will support a docking port for future commercial crew capsules and retrieved tools for future use.

Russia's Progress cargo ship launched from Kazakhstan as planned early Monday morning, at 3:44 a.m. EST, and safely reached orbit to begin a two-day journey to the International Space Station.

The spacewalk was ordered to ensure that the Mobile Transporter is latched securely before the Progress docks at the station.

The Mobile Transporter, which is holding the station's 58-foot robotic arm and other equipment, last week stopped rolling on rails just four inches from a work site near the center of the station orbiting 250 miles up.

Kelly was the lead spacewalker. He wore a suit with red stripes. Kopra wore an all-white suit.

The spacewalk was Kelly's third since he began a yearlong mission in March, and the second of Kopra's career. It was the 191st supporting assembly and maintenance of the orbiting research laboratory.