The two astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) are safely back inside their orbital home after a swift, succeThe two astronauts aboard the International Space Station (ISS) completed a risky spacewalk Wednesday, successfully repairing a crucial component on board the orbital outpost.
Expedition 9 commander Gennady Padalka and NASA science officer Michael Fincke completed their spacewalk -- the second attempt in a week -- and repaired a faulty circuit breaker on the station in less time than had been originally planned for the excursion. Their first attempt last Thursday was aborted 14 minutes into its operation due to a sticky
switch on Finckes spacesuit oxygen bottle. "Hurrah!" Padalka shouted when Houston-based station officials confirmed the success of their work. "Congratulations to all you guys, weve been preparing for this for a month and a half."
During their repair job, the astronauts replaced a device called a remote power control module (RPCM). The module failed on April 21, cutting off power to its gyroscope and leaving the ISS with only two other functioning gyroscopes - the bare minimum required to orient the space station firing Russian thrusters. With the repair complete, the gyroscope can now serve as a backup should one of the others fail.
It should take one day or so for the gyroscope to reach its proper spinning speed, although a one-minute test confirmed it was working properly, NASA officials said.
Houston flight controllers praised the repair spacewalk, which was completed an hour ahead of schedule at 10:59 p.m. EDT (0259 July 1 GMT). The astronauts spent the remainder of their extra time getting a jump on tasks set aside for future extravehicular activities. The astronauts spent a total of five hours and 39 minutes in space during the extravehicular activity (EVA).
"Were glad to be of service," Fincke said.
A tricky task
The success was a happy end to a spacewalk said to carry more risk than other extravehicular activities. Instead of using the U.S. spacesuits designed for their task, the Expedition 9 crew made due with Russian Orlan suits. Two of the three U.S. suits are damaged and are unable to be used until repair parts are sent to the space station.
Padalka and Fincke ventured more than 130 feet (80 meters) from their egress hatch -- the longest distance traveled outside the ISS in the course of the EVA. And despite fears that they would lose communication contact with the ground and each other, the radio signals were constant if not always perfectly clear.
At ISS mission control in Houston, flight controllers breathed sighs of relief as the Expedition 9 crew shut the hatch behind them at the spacewalks end, a NASA spokesman said.
As well as the repairs, Padalka and Fincke installed two flexible handrails, equipment designed to prevent tethers from tangling and a contamination monitor on the outside of the stations Pirs docking compartment, tasks that were scheduled among others in two upcoming Expedition 9 spacewalks.Smooth spacewalking
From start to finish, Expedition 9s second spacewalk was a smooth operation. The achievement was a testament to Russian and American EVA planning for a spacewalk that many officials considered more risky than any staged from the ISS.
Under the direction of Russian flight controllers, the Expedition 9 crew left the stations Pirs docking compartment at 5:19 p.m. EDT (2119 GMT), about 20 minutes ahead of time, and initially worked in darkness, with Fincke climbing to the end of the extendable Strela cargo boom and Padalka extending the boom to its full, 50-foot length.
The astronauts used the boom as a shortcut to reach the U.S. segment of the ISS, where Russian flight controllers handed operations over to their counterparts in Houston -- Padalka and Fincke started speaking English instead of Russian -- at 6:09 p.m. EDT (2209 GMT). Within the hour, the astronauts had reached their work site on a starboard station truss.
Despite several sticky door coverings and bolts, the repair job went quite quickly and by about 8:00 p.m. EDT (0000 July 1 GMT) the task was complete. Padalka and Fincke took some pictures of their work area and backtracked their paths to the Pirs airlock.
"This Strela is comfy ride," Fincke said from the end of the cargo boom as Padalka reeled it back in.
Wednesdays spacewalk was the fourth for Padalka, a veteran astronaut who flew aboard Mir, and the second for Fincke -- counting last weeks 14-minute attempt. It was the 54th maintenance spacewalk for the ISS.
"Its so beautiful around," Padalka said as he and Fincke prepared to reenter the ISS. "At least we had a chance to look around."
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