Astronauts Bob Behnken and Nicholas Patrick are back on the International Space Station after successfully unloading and
installing the 16-ton Tranquility node during a 6.5-hour spacewalk. The
newest addition to the ISS was installed at 1:20 a.m. EST over the
Indian Ocean west of Singapore.
Once Tranquility was
structurally attached to the ISS, the spacewalkers connected heater and
data cables that will integrate the new module with the rest of the
station’s systems. They also pre-positioned insulation blankets and
ammonia hoses that will connect Tranquility to the station’s cooling
radiators during the mission’s second Feb. 13.
When the
spacewalk ended, Mission Control reported that all data and heater
connections were working well, and that the vestibule separating
Tranquility and the ISS had passed its initial leak check.
Tranquility’s hatch is scheduled to be opened at about 9:14 p.m.
The
event drawing the most attention during the mission, the cupola that
will attach to Tranquility -- the so-called room with a view -- will be
moved from Tranquility’s end to its Earth-facing port on Feb. 14.
The
spacewalk was the first of three scheduled spacewalks on the current
mission, the 231st conducted by U.S. astronauts, the fourth for Behnken
and the first for Patrick. It was the 138th in support of ISS assembly
and maintenance, totaling 861 hours, 34 minutes. It was the 110th
spacewalk out of the space station, totaling 674 hours, 19 minutes.
After the node and cupola are added, the orbiting laboratory will be about 90 percent complete.
Tranquility
was built for NASA by Thales Alenia Space in Turin, Italy, under
contract to the ESA (European Space Agency). Although Tranquility was
actually delivered in May, NASA did not officially take possession
until Nov. 30.
Spanning about 22 feet in length and 14 feet in
diameter. The new component will provide an additional docking point
for space shuttles and other crew vehicles visiting the station.
According
to NASA, the cupola's windows will be more than trim. As more cargo
vehicles begin frequenting the space station, the station's robotic arm
is going to be called into action to capture some of them as they
approach and guide them into their docking port. Cupola will provide
additional views for those operations.
NASA has been touting the delivery of the Tranquility node and its attached Cupola since last summer.
"This
flight will, I think, grab the public's attention," said Kirk Shireman,
ISS program deputy manager. "It's just going to be a really, really
neat module for those on board. The dream of being able to go out and
just have an unencumbered view of space – we'll have it. You can open
up all the windows and look around and really feel like you're out
there."
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