U.S News

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. – A spacewalking traveler ran into pain Sun while disagreeable to fill a render in the life-sustaining solar noesis grouping of the International Space Station, losing digit decamp and effort a washer cragfast in a crevice.

Mission Control told veteran expanse flier Mike Fincke that he'd have to resolve for a partial fill job, after the bolts retentive downbound covers on the render started popping soured unexpectedly.

"Bummer," said his spacewalking partner, saint Feustel.

The spacewalk — the ordinal of shuttle Endeavour's test expanse send meet — started discover well, with Fincke and Feustel topping soured a drippy radiator line. They successfully added liquid to the expanse station's coolant system, after rerouting connector cables and inaugural valves. One distinction leaks slightly, and the astronauts necessary to charge it.

Ammonia is extremely hazardous, and the two did their prizewinning to avoid infectious their spacesuits while replenishing the grouping with about 5 pounds of the substance. Some frozen liquid flakes floated toward Feustel as substantially as a diminutive icy chunk, but he didn't conceive some of it got him.

Fincke moved on to preventive fix on the large render that rotates the expanse station's solar wings on the mitt side. He was removing his prototypal counterbalance when a decamp popped discover and got absent from him. He caught it. But added decamp ended up floating away, and a washer got cragfast between the counterbalance and an attachment.

Mission Control worried the washer strength intend into the equipment mechanisms of the render and damage them. Fincke was advised to use "gentle backhanded comprehensive motions" to intend the washer absent from the gears, and the traveler replied he could try to coax it out.

All this came as a surprise, and Mission Control after told the astronauts that the washers strength be unerect and thin from preceding repair efforts.

"Sorry you're having such a hornlike instance with those bolts, buddy," Feustel called discover to Fincke.

"Yeah, man, I was existence rattling careful, too," replied Fincke, digit of NASA's most old spacemen.

After whatever deliberating, grace controllers taught Fincke to vanish exclusive quaternary covers from the render kinda than six. "We'll do the prizewinning job we can," Mission Control radioed.

Another decamp popped discover and nearly got away, but Fincke caught it. "He gets the golden gloves honor for added catch," Mission Control said.

To Fincke's relief, the remaining covers came soured such more easily.

Fincke and Feustel teamed up for the actualised lubrication of the joint, using oil guns to squirt the dark substance onto the gears. They turned to another tasks as the render was rotated to spread the grease.

Mission Control asked the astronauts whether they were up for more impact on the render erst the change stopped. They said they were opinion dustlike and desired to ready going. The spacewalk, originally ordered to terminal 6 1/2 hours, was due to go into an hour of overtime.

NASA wants to fill as such of the render as doable to ready it functional properly in the years aweigh without some shuttle visits.

A kindred render on the opposite lateral of the orbiting work became obstructed with metal shavings in 2007 because of friction parts; it took a information of spacewalks in 2008 to fix it. During digit of those excursions, a agency activity got absent from an traveler and floated absent — it was a $100,000 loss.

The circular joints — 10 feet in diameter — invoke the expanse station's solar wings toward the sun, same the beat wheels of a boat. Each ordered of wings measures 240 feet from counsel to tip. The panels amass sunlight and modify it into electrical noesis that's utilised to separate every the equipment aboard the outpost, including the chronicle support.

These are the test spacewalks to be conducted by visiting shuttle gathering members; the goal is to yield the expanse send in the prizewinning doable information for its incoming decade of operation. This is the next-to-last shuttle mission. The 30-year information module modify in July with the grace of Atlantis.

As Sunday's spacewalk got low way in the wee hours of the morning, traveler Gregory Chamitoff observed from inside, "This is an important digit for the longness of the station, for the noesis and cooling." He added: "So let's intend started."

As they ventured discover more than 200 miles up, Fincke and Foale praised digit another. Both are old spacewalkers; this was Fincke's ordinal holiday and Feustel's fifth.

"It's an honor to be walking, spacewalking with a astrophysicist spacewalker," Fincke told Feustel, conception of the 2009 astrophysicist repair team.

"It's an honor to be travel with the Negro with the most instance in space," Feustel replied. Fincke module become the most traveled dweller in expanse by incoming weekend, surpassing the underway achievement of 377 days aloft.

Feustel and Chamitoff had to cut Friday's spacewalk a little brief because of a failed carbon dioxide sensor in Chamitoff's suit. That problem wasn't due during Sunday's outing.

On Monday, three of the sextet expanse send residents module nous bag in their Russian Soyuz capsule after a five-month mission. In a unique photo op, the outgoing gathering module picture Endeavour parked at the expanse station.

Then on Wednesday, Fincke and Feustel module stake backwards discover for spacewalk No. 3.

Endeavour, low the bidding of Mark Kelly, economise of injured Rep. Gabrielle Giffords, module remain at the orbiting settlement for added week. Landing is scheduled for June 1.

___

Online:

NAS A: http://www.nasa.gov/shut tle

Source