
"40 Years On: NASA's Iconic First Untethered Spacewalk in Thrilling Photos"
On February 7, 1984, NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless II made history by becoming the first human to perform an untethered spacewalk, using the Manned Maneuvering Unit (MMU) during the space shuttle Challenger mission STS-41-B. McCandless orbited Earth for 1 hour and 22 minutes, captured in iconic photos by Robert "Hoot" Gibson, and his famous quip referenced Neil Armstrong's moon landing. McCandless passed away in 2017, and his MMU is now on display at the National Air and Space Museum's Steven F. Udvar-Hazy Center in Virginia.


