--- title: Spacewalk Ends After Astronaut Spots Moisture In Helmet description: A spacewalk by a British astronaut was ended early Friday when he reported moisture inside his helmet. canonical: https://time.com/4182787/british-spacewalk-ended-early/ author: Tessa Berenson article:opinion: false article:content_tier: free article:published_time: 2016-01-15T18:00:16.000Z article:modified_time: 2026-02-22T14:11:00.286Z article:section: Science og:title: Spacewalk Ends After Astronaut Spots Moisture In Helmet og:description: A spacewalk by a British astronaut was ended early Friday when he reported moisture inside his helmet. og:url: https://time.com/4182787/british-spacewalk-ended-early/ og:site_name: TIME og:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5f398ce0ed4857f4/698879608e060110cf464283/spacewalk.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 og:image:width: 1200 og:image:height: 675 og:image:alt: Expedition 46 On International Space Station og:type: article twitter:card: summary_large_image twitter:title: Spacewalk Ends After Astronaut Spots Moisture In Helmet twitter:description: A spacewalk by a British astronaut was ended early Friday when he reported moisture inside his helmet. twitter:image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5f398ce0ed4857f4/698879608e060110cf464283/spacewalk.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  # Spacewalk Ended After Astronaut Spots Moisture In Helmet  by [Tessa Berenson](/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jan 15, 2016 6:00 PM CUT  Astronaut Tim Peake seen on his first-ever spacewalk after having replaced a faulty voltage regulator on the International Space Station on Jan. 15, 2016. Astronaut Tim Peake seen on his first-ever spacewalk after having replaced a faulty voltage regulator on the International Space Station on Jan. 15, 2016.ESA—Getty Images  by [Tessa Berenson](/author/tessa-berenson/)  ## Tessa Berenson Jan 15, 2016 6:00 PM CUT A [spacewalk](http://time.com/4181629/astronauts-spacewalk-watch-space-station/ "undefined") by a British astronaut [was ended](http://www.bbc.com/news/live/science-environment-35303186 "undefined") early Friday when he reported moisture inside his helmet. Tim Peake and his partner were more than four hours into the six hours they had scheduled for their spacewalk when Peake noticed a small water bubble in his helmet, BBC reports. They had completed their most vital tasks for the excursion, so out of an abundance of caution the walk was ended early. According to the [Associated Press](http://abc13.com/news/spacewalk-ends-after-nasa-astronaut-reports-water-inside-helmet/1160438/ "undefined"), the water presented a particular concern after [a near drowning](http://www.theguardian.com/science/2013/aug/20/astronaut-helmet-drowning-interview "undefined") by another astronaut during a 2013 spacewalk after [between one and five liters of water](http://abcnews.go.com/Technology/astronaut-drowns-spacewalk/story?id=19678504 "undefined") leaked into his helmet. In that instance, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano said he was worried he might not be able to return to safety in time. During their time on the walk, the astronauts were able to replace a faulty piece of equipment that helps regulate power from the solar panels at the International Space Station. They were unable to complete other tasks, including installing cables for new docking ports. Both astronauts returned to the International Space Station safely. **More:** Watch TIME’s documentary series: [_A Year in Space_](http://time.com/space-nasa-scott-kelly-mission/ "undefined") ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4182787/british-spacewalk-ended-early/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4182787/british-spacewalk-ended-early/"},"headline":"Spacewalk Ended After Astronaut Spots Moisture In Helmet","datePublished":"2016-01-15T18:00:16.000Z","dateModified":"2026-02-22T14:11:00.286Z","description":"They were four hours into the six hour spacewalk","url":"https://time.com/4182787/british-spacewalk-ended-early/","keywords":["Space"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5f398ce0ed4857f4/698879608e060110cf464283/spacewalk.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Tessa Berenson","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/tessa-berenson/"}],"articleSection":"Science","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt5f398ce0ed4857f4/698879608e060110cf464283/spacewalk.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"Expedition 46 On International Space Station","caption":"Expedition 46 On International Space Station","creditText":"ESA—Getty Images","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/science/","name":"Science"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/space/","name":"Space"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4182787/british-spacewalk-ended-early/","name":"Spacewalk Ended After Astronaut Spots Moisture In Helmet"}}]}] ```