Alexander Gerst prepares for EVA training

ESA astronaut Alexander Gerst, from Germany, prepares for EVA training at ESA's Neutral Buoyancy Facility at the European Astronaut Centre, in Cologne, Germany, 8 September 2010.
This course teaches ESA astronauts basic Extravehicular Activity (EVA, or 'spacewalk') concepts and skills, such as tethering to the International Space Station, the use of special EVA tools, communicating with an EVA crewmate and with the control room and how to keep full situational awareness in a complex and challenging environment.