NASA TV to Air U.S. Spacewalk

On Sept. 1, two NASA astronauts will spacewalk outside the International Space Station for the second time in less than two weeks.

NASA Television will provide complete coverage beginning at 6:30 a.m. EDT, with the six-and-a-half hour spacewalk scheduled to begin about 8 a.m.

Working on the port side  truss, Expedition 48 Commander Jeff Williams and Flight Engineer Kate Rubins will retract a thermal radiator that is part of the station’s cooling system. The radiator is a backup that had been deployed previously as part of an effort to fix an ammonia coolant leak. They’ll also tighten struts on a solar array joint, and install the first of several enhanced high-definition television cameras that will be used to monitor activities outside the station, including the comings and goings of visiting cargo and crew vehicles.

This will be the 195th spacewalk in support of space station assembly and maintenance, the fifth of Williams’ career and the second for Rubins. As was the case for their first spacewalk together Aug. 19, Williams will be designated as extravehicular crew member 1 (EV1), wearing a spacesuit with a red stripe, while Rubins will be EV2, wearing a suit with no stripes.

Helmet Leak Forces NASA to Scrub EVA

A leak in the helmet of Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano, his country's first astronaut to walk in space,

forced NASA to terminate Tuesday's EVA.

The leak in question was a water leak in  Parmitano's helmet that grew progressively worse an hour into the EVA.  The leak was believed to be a tube in Luca's helmet leading to his water pouch, but NASA feels the leak in the helmet was “not readily identifiable.”

Luca initially mentioned the rise in humidity in the helmet, making it difficult to see at times. But as the water was pooing in the back of the helmet, NASA felt it was ok to continue with the mission.  But when he complained of water getting into his eyes, NASA advised Parmitano to  prceed to the airlock as they were terminating the EVA immediately.

According to Universe Today "At one point, there was so much water inside Parmitano’s ears and around his face that he couldn’t hear or speak to communicate with the other astronauts."

Once back inside the ISS, the crew, after removing Parmitano's helmet, reported that he was miserable but suffered no other ill effects.

Improptu Space Walk on the ISS, a First for NASA!

Spurred by a recent Ammonia leak, astronauts aboard the ISS took the uncharacteristic action of instituting an EVA Saturday with the plan of finding the leak that if left unchecked, would leave the station without power in a few short hours. 

Astronauts Thomas Marshburn and Christopher Cassidy, prepped for the walk shortly after the discovered leak on Thursday and exited the station Saturday, proceeded to the source of the leak where they replaced a suspected pump, in a closely scrutinized five plus hour EVA.  

NASA is still unclear as to the cause of the leak so  it remained unclear whether the issue had been entirely resolved.   (note yellow circles in top photo show Ammonia flakes streaming from the unknown leak)

More on the c/net article site

Top 10 best Spacewalks in History

Extra-vehicular activity (EVA) is work done by an astronaut away from the Earth and outside of a spacecraft. The term most commonly applies to an EVA made outside a craft orbiting Earth (a spacewalk). As of September 13, 2006, 158 astronauts had made spacewalks (out of 448 astronauts ever in space). These are some of the most interesting moments in spacewalks history.

Click on the article title or the photo to go to the blog site which contains some fantastic pictures and videos. Enjoy!