American astronaut Leroy Chiao and Russian cosmonaut Salizhan Sharipov completed a successful walk in space Monday and installed equipment that will enable a European cargo craft to dock at the International Space Station to resupply the station.

The space walk was supposed to take six hours but the mission was completed in only four-and-a-half hours. 'They managed to do everything — they finished early because they were very well prepared,' a spokesman for mission control told Reuters.

In addition, the two astronauts launched a small satellite. It was launched manually by 'throwing it like a basketball' and will be used to gather information on natural disasters such as floods, earthquakes and fires.

Sharipov and Chiao are scheduled to leave the International Space Station in April. They have been on the space station for six months during which they have suffered problems with power and supplies. At one point, rations had to be reduced to prolong their food and water supply.

A new crew of Russian and American astronauts will begin their six-month stay at the space station in April.

The resumption of missions by the space shuttle should help alleviate any supply issues the space station has been having. The shuttle is the most efficient way of supplying the station. NASA plans to resume flights in May or June of this year.