Space suit issue prompts delay of second spacewalk

[Buster's Uncle]

Space suit issue prompts delay of second spacewalk
Associated Press
By MARCIA DUNN  December 21, 2013 7:03 PM



In this image made from video provided by NASA, astronaut Rick Mastracchio performs a space walk outside the International Space Station on Saturday, Dec. 21, 2013. Mastracchio and Michael Hopkins ventured out of the station to try to revive a crippled cooling line. (AP Photo/NASA)



CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. (AP) — Astronauts removed an old space station pump Saturday, sailing through the first of a series of urgent repair spacewalks to revive a crippled cooling line.

The two Americans on the crew, Rick Mastracchio and Michael Hopkins, successfully pulled out the ammonia pump with a bad valve __ well ahead of schedule. That task had been planned for the next spacewalk, originally scheduled for Monday but now delayed until Tuesday, Christmas Eve, because of the need for a suit swap.

"An early Christmas," observed Mission Control as Mastracchio tugged the refrigerator-size pump away from its nesting spot.

If Mastracchio and Hopkins keep up the quick work, two spacewalks may be enough to complete the installation of a spare pump and a third spacewalk will not be needed as originally anticipated.

Several hours after Saturday's spacewalk ended, Mission Control bumped spacewalk 2 to Tuesday to give Mastracchio enough time to prepare a spare suit. His original suit was compromised when he inadvertently turned on a water switch in the air lock at the end of Saturday's excursion. NASA officials said Saturday night that it's unclear whether a third spacewalk will be needed and when it might occur, if required. A third spacewalk had been slated for Christmas Day before the latest turn of events. NASA requires a day off between spacewalks for astronaut rest.

The space station breakdown 10 days earlier left one of two identical cooling loops too cold and forced the astronauts to turn off all nonessential equipment inside the orbiting lab, bringing scientific research to a near-halt and leaving the station in a vulnerable state.

Mission Control wanted to keep the spacewalkers out even longer Saturday to get even further ahead, but a cold and uncomfortable Mastracchio requested to go back. The spacewalk ended after 5½ hours, an hour short on time but satisfyingly long on content.

Earlier, Mastracchio managed to unhook all the ammonia fluid and electrical lines on the pump with relative ease, occasionally releasing a flurry of frozen ammonia flakes that brushed against his suit. A small O-ring floated away, but he managed to retrieve it.

"I got it, I got it, I got it. Barely," Mastracchio said as he stretched out his hand.

"Don't let that go, that's a stocking stuffer," Mission Control replied.

"Don't tell my wife," Mastracchio said, chuckling, as he put it in a small pouch for trash.

Mastracchio, a seven-time spacewalker, and Hopkins, making his first, wore extra safety gear as they worked outside. NASA wanted to prevent a recurrence of the helmet flooding that nearly drowned an Italian astronaut last summer, so Saturday's spacewalkers had snorkels in their suits and water-absorbent pads in their helmets.

To everyone's relief, the spacewalkers remained dry while outside. But midway through the excursion, Mastracchio's toes were so cold that he had to crank up the heat in his boots. Mission Control worried aloud whether it was wise to extend the spacewalk to get ahead, given Mastracchio's discomfort.

Not quite two hours later, Mastracchio had enough as he clutched the old pump. When Mission Control suggested even more get-ahead chores, he replied, "I'd like to stow this old module and kind of clean up and call it a day." He said a couple of things were bothering him, not just temperature, and declined to elaborate when asked by Mission Control what was wrong.

Flight controllers obliged him. Once the old pump was secured to a temporary location, the spacewalkers started gathering up their tools to go in.

Adding to the excitement 260 miles (418 kilometers) up, a smoke alarm went off in the space station as the astronauts toiled outside. It was quickly found to be a false alarm.

The pump replacement is a huge undertaking attempted only once before, back in 2010 on this very unit. The two astronauts who tackled the job three years ago were in Mission Control, offering guidance. Mastracchio promised to bring back a wire tie installed on the pump by the previous spacewalkers. "Oh, awesome, thanks Rick," replied the astronaut in Mission Control who put it on.

The 780-pound (354-kilogram) pump is about the size of a double-door refrigerator and extremely cumbersome to handle, with plumbing full of toxic ammonia. Any traces of ammonia on the spacesuits were dissipated before the astronauts went back inside, to avoid further contamination.

NASA's plan initially called for the pump to be disconnected in the first spacewalk, pulled out on the second spacewalk and a fresh spare put in, and then all the hookups of the new pump completed in the third outing.

In the days following the Dec. 11 breakdown, flight controllers attempted in vain to fix the bad valve through remote commanding. Then they tried using a different valve to regulate the temperature of the overly cold loop, with some success. But last Tuesday, NASA decided the situation was severe enough to press ahead with the spacewalks. Although the astronauts were safe and comfortable, NASA did not want to risk another failure and a potential loss of the entire cooling system, needed to radiate the heat generated by on-board equipment.

NASA delayed a delivery mission from Wallops Island, Virginia, to accommodate the spacewalks. That flight by the private firm Orbital Sciences Corp., which should have occurred this past week, is now targeted for Jan. 7.

Until Saturday, U.S. spacewalks had been on hold since July, when an Italian astronaut's helmet was flooded with water from the cooling system of his suit. Luca Parmitano barely got back inside alive.

Engineers traced the problem to a device in the suit that turned out to be contaminated — how and why, no one yet knows.

For Saturday's spacewalk, Hopkins wore Parmitano's suit, albeit with newly installed and thoroughly tested components.

Just in case, NASA had Mastracchio and Hopkins build snorkels out of plastic tubing from their suits, before going out. The snorkels will be used in case water starts building up in their helmets. They also put absorbent pads in their helmets; the pads were launched from Earth following the July scare. None of the precautions were needed, in the end.

Besides the two Americans, three Russian and one Japanese astronaut are living on the space station, all men.


http://news.yahoo.com/space-suit-issue-prompts-delay-second-spacewalk-234536434.html

[Buster's Uncle]

Water in Ageing Spacesuit Caused Problems for Astronaut
Good Morning America
By LIZ FIELDS  14 hours ago






NASA's Mission Control has revealed the problem that prompted the early end of the latest spacewalk: Water in one of the astronaut's 35-year-old spacesuits.

Expedition 38 Flight Engineer Rick Mastracchio and fellow astronaut Michael Hopkins ran into trouble while they were conducting an urgent repair outside the International Space Station during a spacewalk that lasted five hours and 28 minutes.

The spacewalk ended short of its anticipated six-and-a-half-hour time frame when Mastracchio, the lead spacewalker, began complaining about chilly temperatures in his space suit.

The seven-time spacewalker said his feet were cold during at least part of the nearly five-and-a-half-hour walk and at times had to re-adjust temperature controls in his suit.

Even before the emergency repair mission began, NASA acknowledged it was working with aging spacesuits, which were designed in the same era of the space shuttle.

"Because the suits are 35 years old we review the hazards every so often as a matter of course," NASA's ISS Program Manager, Mike Suffredini told ABC News Radio.

The astronauts began working at 7:01 a.m. ET on Saturday to replace a degraded ammonia pump module associated with one of the station's two cooling loops that keep internal and external equipment cool, NASA said.

The engineers raced to successfully remove, ahead of schedule, the cooling pump that has jeopardized operations aboard the ISS since it broke on Dec. 11.

The 780-pound pump is about the size of a double-door refrigerator and difficult to handle, with plumbing full of toxic ammonia, The Associated Press reported. Flight controllers tried but failed to fix the bad valve through remote commanding.

During the repairs, the astronauts communicated with Mission Control Houston about the procedure. NASA's website offered the public a live video feed showing the astronauts and Mission Control.

At one point, when Mission Control asked Mastracchio to extend the spacewalk, he balked.

"My vote would be to call it for today, but it's up to you guys if you really want to go out there," Mastracchio said.

The work of the two astronauts Saturday was part of a planned series of spacewalks to replace the ammonia pump module.

While the astronauts successfully removed the pump on Saturday, plans to replace it two days later have been delayed. The pair will now spend Christmas Eve trying to finish the work, after NASA cancelled Monday's spacewalk to investigate what caused the latest malfunction.

NASA says a third spacewalk would occur on Christmas Day if necessary to finalize the installation of the replacement pump module. It would be the first Christmas spacewalk for NASA.

Mastracchio has conducted six previous spacewalks, and holds the record for the 14th longest total number of spacewalking hours. He wore extra safety gear to prevent a recurrence of helmet flooding that nearly drowned an Italian astronaut last summer. This was Hopkins' first spacewalk.

The two astronauts received guidance on the spacewalk procedures from NASA astronauts Doug Wheelock and Tracy Caldwell-Dyson, who replaced the pump at the same location during three spacewalks in August 2010, NASA said.


http://news.yahoo.com/water-ageing-spacesuit-caused-problems-astronaut-191056384--abc-news-topstories.html

[Buster's Uncle]

Spacewalkers making quick work of space-station repairs
By MarketWatch   Dec. 23, 2013, 9:03 a.m. EST
 


Expedition 38 crew member Rick Mastracchio checks out the spacesuit that he will wear during a spacewalk with crew member Mike Hopkins, in the Quest airlock in the International Space Station in this undated image taken from video from NASA TV.



WASHINGTON (MarketWatch) — Two NASA astronauts conducted a five-and-a-half hour spacewalk Saturday to begin repairs of the cooling system on the International Space Station.

This is the first of at least two spacewalks to switch a faulty ammonia pump. Today, the astronauts are disconnecting the pump and preparing a spare unit for installation on a follow-on spacewalk, NASA said. Watch live coverage of the station spacewalkers at work.

The astronauts, Rick Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins, stepped into space just after 7 a.m. Eastern. The spacewalk ended just before 12:30 p.m..

The spacewalk went smoothly, NASA said. The spacewalkers are so far ahead of schedule that a third spacewalk to finalize the repair scheduled for Christmas Day might not be needed.

There are six astronauts on the space station. The crew is not in immediate danger.

There has been added concern about this spacewalk because one of the spacesuits being used malfunctioned this summer. Water unexpectedly filled the helmet of one of the suits while it was being used by an Italian astronaut and he almost drowned.

The astronauts have devised a snorkel so that the astronauts can get air from other parts of their suits in an emergency. But no problems with the helmets were reported.

The next spacewalk will be on Monday morning. No decision has been made on the Christmas spacewalk.


http://www.marketwatch.com/story/spacewalkers-making-quick-work-of-space-station-repairs-2013-12-21?siteid=yhoof2

[Buster's Uncle]

NASA Astronauts Gearing Up for Christmas Eve Spacewalk
SPACE.com
By Miriam Kramer, Staff Writer  31 minutes ago



NASA astronaut Rick Mastracchio stands on the International Space Station's robotic arm



Two astronauts on the International Space Station are set for a Christmas Eve spacewalk tomorrow (Dec. 24).

NASA astronauts Rick Mastracchio and Mike Hopkins will don their spacesuits and float out into the weightless wonderland of space for another spacewalk to repair the orbiting outpost's critical cooling system Tuesday. This EVA (extra-vehicular activity, or spacewalk) is the second in a series of spacewalks quickly planned after a problem with the vital system arose on Dec. 11.

Originally, NASA officials planned three spacewalks to fix the issue, however, if all goes well during the Christmas Eve EVA, the astronauts should be able to get the system back up and running at full capacity without a third spacewalk. You can watch the full 6.5-hour long spacewalk on SPACE.com via NASA TV. Live coverage starts at 6:15 a.m. EST (1115 GMT), and the Christmas Eve spacewalk should start at about 7:10 a.m. EST (1210 GMT).

"We are not working any possible conjunctions or avoidance maneuvers for a sleigh being pulled by reindeer and occupied by a jolly man with a beard and a red suit over the next two days," NASA spokesman Rob Navias joked of Santa Claus today (Dec. 23) on NASA TV. "The skies are all clear."

During the first spacewalk on Dec. 21, Hopkins and Mastracchio got ahead of their tasks and removed a faulty pump module in one of the station's two cooling loops, storing it on the outside of the station. Because they jumped ahead of schedule, the spacewalkers completed about two hours worth of tasks designated for the second walk.



NASA astronaut Mike Hopkins looks to the camera during his first spacewalk on Dec. 21, 2013.


For the Christmas Eve spacewalk, Mastracchio and Hopkins will work to install a new pump module to replace the one they removed during the earlier walk. Some non-vital systems have been powered down since the problem began, but the replacement should get the cooling system back up and running, NASA officials have said.

This will be Mastracchio's eighth spacewalk and Hopkins' second. Initially, Mastracchio was going to do his work while attached to the space station's robotic arm throughout the second spacewalk, and Hopkins was going to get to work while attached to the arm during the third. However, because the third spacewalk might be unnecessary, Hopkins will work on the robotic arm while Mastracchio free-floats during the Dec. 24 spacewalk.

"Because it's apparent now that we'll be able to get most all of our critical objectives done on our next EVA — which is going to be tomorrow — there was some thought from both the crew and from the ground here that it would be good to get Mike [Hopkins] some experience flying in the arm," NASA's Judd Frieling, lead flight director for the station's Expedition 38 crew, said. "We went ahead and swapped roles between the crewmembers."

The Christmas Eve spacewalk was initially scheduled for today (Dec. 23), but after water may have entered Mastracchio's suit when he returned to the airlock after the Dec. 21 EVA, NASA decided to delay the second spacewalk an extra day.

The water issue is not related to the frightening incident that caused water to flood European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano's spacesuit during a spacewalk in July, space agency officials said, but Mastracchio will be not be wearing that spacesuit on the second EVA.

"We're going to dry that [Mastracchio's spacesuit] out properly," Frieling said. "It'll probably take on the order of a week to get that properly dried out, but there's no expectation that suit will be a 'no go' indefinitely."

The spacewalks delayed the first official cargo mission of aerospace firm Orbital Sciences' unmanned Cygnus spacecraft. The robotic spacecraft was scheduled to launch toward the International Space Station on Dec. 19, but that liftoff will not occur before Jan. 7, 2014, NASA officials have said.


http://news.yahoo.com/nasa-astronauts-gearing-christmas-eve-spacewalk-185459056.html