. | . |
US astronauts complete spacewalk for ISS maintenance by Staff Writers Washington (AFP) Sept 1, 2016
Two US astronauts aboard the International Space Station successfully completed a spacewalk Thursday to make repairs and install new equipment. "NASA astronauts completed all planned tasks + a few extra," the US space agency said on Twitter. Americans Jeff Williams, 58, and Kate Rubins, 37, completed their mission at 1841 GMT after six hours and 48 minutes in space. It was their first time in space in nearly two weeks. At that time, they attached an international docking adaptor in anticipation of increased private spaceship traffic. This time, Williams and Rubins retracted one of the thermal radiators outside the space station. Astronauts unsuccessfully tried to push it back into position last year. They also "installed two enhanced high definition cameras on the station's truss and tightened bolts on a joint that enables one of the station's solar arrays to rotate," NASA said. The cameras will be used to monitor spaceships transporting freight and astronauts. The mission was the 195th spacewalk undertaken to build and maintain the ISS. It was the fifth spacewalk for Williams, a veteran astronaut who on August 19 surpassed US astronaut Scott Kelly's record for the most cumulative days in space for an American. Kelly has 520 days in space over his career. Williams will have 534 days in space by the time he wraps up his stint at the ISS and returns to Earth next week. It was the second spacewalk for Rubins. She is the 12th woman to walk in space. In their August 19 spacewalk, Williams and Rubins installed a special parking spot on the ISS and connected power and data cables for the docking adaptor. The fittings will enable the space station to share power and data with visiting spaceships. NASA describes the docking adaptor as a "metaphorical gateway to a future" that will allow a new generation of US spacecraft -- the first since the space shuttle program ended in 2011 -- to carry astronauts to the space station. The second docking adaptor is expected to be launched in late 2017. The adaptors will work with Boeing's CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX's Crew Dragon, two spaceships under construction that are planned to ferry astronauts to the space station.
Related Links Station at NASA Station and More at Roscosmos S.P. Korolev RSC Energia Watch NASA TV via Space.TV Space Station News at Space-Travel.Com
|
|
The content herein, unless otherwise known to be public domain, are Copyright 1995-2024 - Space Media Network. All websites are published in Australia and are solely subject to Australian law and governed by Fair Use principals for news reporting and research purposes. AFP, UPI and IANS news wire stories are copyright Agence France-Presse, United Press International and Indo-Asia News Service. ESA news reports are copyright European Space Agency. All NASA sourced material is public domain. Additional copyrights may apply in whole or part to other bona fide parties. All articles labeled "by Staff Writers" include reports supplied to Space Media Network by industry news wires, PR agencies, corporate press officers and the like. Such articles are individually curated and edited by Space Media Network staff on the basis of the report's information value to our industry and professional readership. Advertising does not imply endorsement, agreement or approval of any opinions, statements or information provided by Space Media Network on any Web page published or hosted by Space Media Network. General Data Protection Regulation (GDPR) Statement Our advertisers use various cookies and the like to deliver the best ad banner available at one time. All network advertising suppliers have GDPR policies (Legitimate Interest) that conform with EU regulations for data collection. By using our websites you consent to cookie based advertising. If you do not agree with this then you must stop using the websites from May 25, 2018. Privacy Statement. Additional information can be found here at About Us. |