Chinese astronauts' EVAs to help extend mechanical arm

The extravehicular activities (EVAs) carried out by two Chinese astronauts from Sunday evening till early Monday morning will help expand the capabilities of the mechanical arm on the country's space station, said the China Academy of Space Technology (CAST).

Astronauts Zhai Zhigang and Wang Yaping were out of China's space station core module Tianhe by 8:28 p.m. (Beijing Time) Sunday, and completed their EVAs and returned to the space station core module Tianhe at 1:16 a.m. (Beijing Time) Monday.

They performed a series of extravehicular tasks, including installing the dual-arm connector (the device linking the big and small mechanical arms) and the suspension device.

The devices will help realize the connection of the big arm on the core module Tianhe and the small arm on the lab module Wentian, which is expected to be launched in 2022 to dock with Tianhe.

The connected mechanical arms will be able to transfer a heavier load for a larger area range.

According to Gao Sheng, an engineer in charge of the mechanical arm operation with the CAST, after connection, the big arm, 10 meters long, and the small arm, five meters long, will form a combined mechanical arm, with its operation range extended to 14.5 meters.

The combined mechanical arm can cover three modules of the space station, inspecting their surface at any time, and can carry out difficult and diverse missions, Gao said.

China launched the Shenzhou-13 spaceship on Oct. 16, sending three astronauts on a six-month in-orbit mission to construct its space station.

Source: Xinhua News Agency

Related Links
China Manned Space Agency
The Chinese Space Program - News, Policy and Technology
China News from SinoDaily.com

Tweet

Thanks for being there;
We need your help. The SpaceDaily news network continues to grow but revenues have never been harder to maintain.

With the rise of Ad Blockers, and Facebook - our traditional revenue sources via quality network advertising continues to decline. And unlike so many other news sites, we don't have a paywall - with those annoying usernames and passwords.

Our news coverage takes time and effort to publish 365 days a year.

If you find our news sites informative and useful then please consider becoming a regular supporter or for now make a one off contribution.

SpaceDaily Monthly Supporter
$5+ Billed Monthly

paypal only

SpaceDaily Contributor
$5 Billed Once

credit card or paypal

Astronaut becomes first Chinese woman to spacewalk
Beijing (AFP) Nov 8, 2021
Astronaut Wang Yaping became the first Chinese woman to walk in space, authorities said Monday, as her team completed a six-hour stint outside the Tiangong space station as part of its ongoing construction. Tiangong - meaning "heavenly palace" - is the latest achievement in China's drive to become a major space power, after landing a rover on Mars and sending probes to the Moon. Its core module entered orbit earlier this year, with the station expected to be operational by 2022. Wang and ... read more