Astronauts outfitted the International Space Station with fresh batteries in an extra-long spacewalk Friday, moving slowly to avoid a repeat of the suit trouble that cut short the previous outing.
At Mission Control's request, Christopher Cassidy and Thomas Marshburn took their time heading out to the far end of the space station, where a series of critical battery changes awaited them. It was difficult dealing with all the stiff bolts, and the men paced themselves accordingly as they pulled out 9-year-old batteries and plugged in new ones.
By midafternoon, five hours into their spacewalk, the two had installed three fresh batteries. One more remained.
The last time Cassidy went out, on Wednesday, he was so gung-ho and moved so fast that the air-cleansing canister in his suit could not keep up. That resulted in rising carbon dioxide levels that forced an early end to the spacewalk.
"He's a Navy SEAL, he's in great shape, and so we really needed to tell him, 'Hey, we know you can do this really well and really fast ... just slow down a little and take your time,'" explained flight director Holly Ridings.
The spacewalkers took the advice to heart. But despite Cassidy's effort to stay relaxed, his metabolic rate was a little high at one point and Mission Control gave some of the early battery tasks to Marshburn. That gave Cassidy, a 39-year-old Navy commander, a bit of a break.
Niciun comentariu:
Trimiteți un comentariu