NASA announced on Monday that seven crew members from Expedition 71, including Indian-origin astronaut Sunita Williams, have begun preparations for spacewalks and a range of advanced microgravity research aboard the International Space Station (ISS). The nine residents on the ISS are also engaged in maintaining electronic systems, life support systems, and orbital plumbing.

The US space agency has scheduled two spacewalks, on June 24 and July 2. During the first spacewalk, two astronauts will remove faulty radio hardware and collect microorganisms from station surfaces. The tasks planned for the second spacewalk include replacing a gyroscope assembly, relocating an antenna, and preparing the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer for future upgrades, according to NASA.

NASA reported that Starliner Pilot Sunita Williams started her day by transferring wastewater between station modules. She then replaced a video camera in the Columbus laboratory module. Later, she watered the Advanced Plant Habitat in the Kibo lab in preparation for upcoming scientific experiments.

Meanwhile, Starliner Commander Butch Wilmore conducted maintenance work in the Harmony module’s maintenance area. He set up hardware and conducted research on liquid flows as part of the Gaucho Lung study, which aims to improve drug delivery for respiratory conditions, treat infants with respiratory distress syndrome, and prevent tube contamination with intermittent liquid flows.

Sunita Williams made history as the first woman to pilot a test spacecraft on its maiden flight to space. The 58-year-old astronaut has previously spent 322 days in space and holds the record for the most hours of spacewalk by a woman. This mission marks her third spaceflight, following missions in 2006 and 2012.