Anil Menon To Make Second Spacewalk From ISS On August 18: What He Will Do
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Summarized by AI; it may make mistakes. Check important info
Indian-origin astronaut Anil Menon is set to venture outside the International Space Station (ISS) for the second time on August 18, joining European Space Agency astronaut Sophie Adenot for a spacewalk expected to last around six and a half hours.
The pair will replace a failed high-speed data and communications antenna on the orbiting laboratory, just days after Menon completed his first spacewalk.
Spacewalk to begin at 6:05 pm IST
NASA is scheduled to begin live coverage at 4:30 pm IST, with the spacewalk expected to start at around 6:05 pm IST.
Menon and Adenot will leave the ISS to remove the failed Space-to-Ground antenna. They will place it on an external platform before installing a spare antenna on the station’s Z1 truss.
The antenna serves as an important communications link between the ISS and Mission Control in Houston, enabling high-speed data and communications.
How does a spacewalk work?
A spacewalk, formally known as an Extra Vehicular Activity (EVA), involves an astronaut leaving a spacecraft to carry out work in the vacuum of space.
Astronauts outside the ISS wear specially designed spacesuits that provide oxygen, pressure, cooling and protection from the extreme environment. Safety tethers keep them connected to the station, while handrails help them move around its exterior.
The suits effectively function as small personal spacecraft, allowing astronauts to perform repairs, install equipment and carry out upgrades without bringing the station back to Earth.
Menon’s second spacewalk in less than two weeks
Menon completed his first-ever spacewalk on August 6 alongside NASA astronaut Jessica Meir. The pair spent 6 hours and 27 minutes outside the ISS preparing the station’s 3B power channel for a future roll-out solar array.
The work is intended to enable the installation of another solar array and increase the station’s power supply. It was the 281st spacewalk conducted in support of ISS assembly, maintenance and upgrades.
Adenot set to make history
The August 18 operation will mark Menon’s second spacewalk and Adenot’s first.
According to NASA, the mission will also make Adenot the first French woman to conduct a spacewalk.
NASA astronauts Jack Hathaway and Jessica Meir will assist Menon and Adenot while they put on and remove their spacesuits. Hathaway will also operate the ISS’s Canadarm2 robotic arm during the operation.
The astronauts have been rehearsing the procedure, checking their spacesuits and reviewing the movements required to safely complete the antenna replacement outside the station.
