“There Was Only Nothingness”: Sophie Adenot Describes the Raw Reality of Stepping Into Space

Stepping outside the International Space Station is something very few humans have ever experienced. For ESA astronaut Sophie Adenot, the reality became even more intense after she completed three spacewalks in just 15 days. Looking back at her latest excursion, Adenot described the moment of leaving the safety of the station as an experience that cannot be compared with simply looking at Earth through a window.

Her description of space as a place where there is effectively “nothingness” beneath the astronaut captures an important reality of human spaceflight: the spectacular view comes with an environment that offers absolutely no margin for error.

Adenot's third spacewalk, conducted with NASA astronaut Jessica Meir on September 1, lasted 6 hours and 49 minutes. It was her third excursion outside the ISS and brought her total spacewalking time to 19 hours and 42 minutes.

Looking at Space From Inside Is Completely Different

Adenot compared viewing the vastness of space from inside the station with actually stepping outside.

From a spacecraft window, an astronaut remains protected by the station's walls, pressure and life-support systems. Outside, that physical barrier disappears. The spacesuit becomes the astronaut's immediate life-support environment, while hundreds of kilometres of empty space separate the astronaut from Earth.

Adenot explained the psychological difference by comparing it to standing at the edge of a cliff while safely inside a car. Looking over the edge can be beautiful and impressive, but the feeling changes completely when the protective barrier is removed.

During her third EVA, she reached the forward end of the station's Harmony module to replace a failed retroreflector used as a navigation aid for spacecraft rendezvous and docking. From that position, she had roughly 400 kilometres of space between herself and Earth.

The view was extraordinary—but it was also intimidating.

A View of Earth Unlike Anything on the Ground

Adenot's latest spacewalk gave her a particularly dramatic perspective.

She reached the forward section of the station during orbital night, with her helmet lights illuminating the area immediately around her. Then the Sun appeared over Earth's horizon.

Below her was the blue Earth. Above and around her was the darkness of space.

The contrast is one of the most striking features of an orbital spacewalk. Astronauts can see a bright, living planet against a background that appears almost completely black.

For Adenot, the experience was both beautiful and unsettling. The astronaut's position outside the station makes the enormous scale of the planet and the emptiness surrounding it far more immediate than it appears through ordinary photographs or even station windows.

Three Spacewalks in Just 15 Days

Adenot's experience was unusual even by spaceflight standards.

Her first spacewalk took place on August 18, when she worked with NASA astronaut Anil Menon to remove a failed Space-to-Ground antenna. The excursion lasted 6 hours and 23 minutes, but stuck bolts and electrical connectors prevented the astronauts from completing the planned installation of the replacement antenna.

The mission required a second attempt on August 25.

Adenot and Menon returned outside the station and completed the antenna replacement during the follow-up excursion.

Just one week later, Adenot was back outside—this time with Jessica Meir.

That third spacewalk was considerably different. Instead of continuing the antenna work, the pair handled several station-maintenance and scientific tasks.

What Adenot and Meir Did Outside the ISS

During the September 1 EVA, the astronauts completed several jobs that support the station's long-term operation.

Adenot replaced a retroreflector on the forward port of the Harmony module. The device is important for spacecraft navigation during rendezvous and docking operations.

The astronauts also installed electrical jumper cables, replaced a high-definition external camera and prepared equipment associated with future maintenance of the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer, a particle detector mounted on the station.

They also collected swab samples for NASA's Microorganisms experiment, which investigates whether microorganisms are released from the station through life-support vents and how far they travel.

These tasks may sound routine compared with the dramatic images of astronauts floating above Earth, but they demonstrate the real purpose of most spacewalks: maintaining an extremely complex machine while it travels around Earth at high speed.

Even the Spacesuit Created a Problem

The third EVA also demonstrated why astronauts must constantly monitor their equipment.

During the spacewalk, Adenot experienced restricted movement in her left shoulder.

Jessica Meir inspected the spacesuit and determined that a glove-heater harness appeared to have become caught inside the suit fabric. After part of the suit layer was unzipped, the obstruction was released and Adenot regained full movement.

It was a relatively small equipment issue, but outside the station even small problems matter.

A spacesuit is effectively a miniature spacecraft. It has to maintain pressure, provide oxygen, remove carbon dioxide, control temperature and protect the astronaut from the hostile environment outside the station.

A mobility problem can therefore become much more significant when an astronaut is hundreds of kilometres above Earth and cannot simply step back indoors.

Why the Physical Toll Matters

The repeated excursions also placed considerable physical demands on Adenot.

Spacewalks require astronauts to work in pressurised suits that restrict movement. Every task must be performed carefully while astronauts use handrails, foot restraints and tethers to position themselves around the station.

Adenot had already described the physical effects of her earlier spacewalks, highlighting the need for recovery after putting maximum effort into the work.

After three EVAs in 15 days, the accumulated workload becomes particularly significant.

ESA noted that Adenot had accumulated 19 hours and 42 minutes of spacewalking time after the third excursion.

For future missions to the Moon and Mars, understanding this physical burden will be crucial. Astronauts may need to perform demanding external work while also dealing with longer mission durations and more limited opportunities for assistance from Earth.

Sophie Adenot's Milestone Goes Beyond One Spacewalk

Adenot's first EVA on August 18 was historic: she became the first French woman to conduct a spacewalk. It was also her first time working outside the ISS.

By September 1, however, the story had quickly evolved from a historic first into a demanding operational assignment.

She had completed three spacewalks, worked with two different NASA astronauts and accumulated nearly 20 hours outside the station.

ESA described the September 1 excursion as the 33rd spacewalk conducted by a European astronaut. It was also the 284th spacewalk supporting space station assembly, maintenance and upgrades.

That experience contributes to a much larger body of knowledge about how humans can safely work outside spacecraft.

What This Means for Future Space Exploration

The value of an ISS spacewalk extends well beyond the immediate repair or maintenance task.

Every EVA provides information about astronaut workload, spacesuit design, tools, station architecture and human performance in microgravity.

That information becomes increasingly important as space agencies plan missions beyond low-Earth orbit.

The Moon will present different challenges, including dust and partial gravity. Mars missions will introduce even greater distances, communication delays and mission durations.

Astronauts may eventually have to perform complex repairs with far less immediate support from Earth.

Adenot's experience shows both sides of that challenge. Advanced preparation allows astronauts to handle unexpected problems, but the environment remains unforgiving.

The Bottom Line

Sophie Adenot's description of stepping into space provides a rare glimpse into the psychological reality behind spectacular spacewalk photographs. During her third EVA, she experienced the beauty of Earth's blue horizon and the intimidating emptiness surrounding it while working hundreds of kilometres above the planet.

The September 1 mission also showed the practical side of human spaceflight: equipment can jam, spacesuit components can interfere with movement and complex maintenance work can take longer than expected.

Yet Adenot and Jessica Meir completed their mission successfully, adding another chapter to the growing experience base for human operations outside spacecraft.

For future Moon and Mars missions, that experience could prove just as valuable as the equipment they repaired.

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