spacewalks - WKTV Journal

Astronauts will take two spacewalks this week to install the first IROSA solar array. (NASA.gov)

Wednesday, June 16, WKTV will be featuring the first of two scheduled International Space Station U.S. spacewalks.

NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough and astronaut Thomas Pesquet, from the European Space Agency, will venture outside the space station Wednesday morning for the Expedition 65 Spacewalk #74 to install the first IRPSA solar array on the P6 Truss fro the 2B Channel Power System.

The new type of Roll Out Solar Array, a lightweight, flexible power source, provides much more energy than traditional solar arrays at much less weight

NASA astronaut Shane Kimbrough (NASA.gov)

Cover begins at 6:30 a.m, with the spacewalk scheduled to begin at 8 a.m.. Check the live footage of the astronauts as they continue with the overall upgrade of the space station’s power system. The spacewalk will last approximately six and half hours.

On Sunday, June 20, the second spacewalk to install an additional IROSA solar array will take place at 8 a.m. with coverage starting at 6:30 p.m.

For more information on NASA TV or the International Space Station, visit www.nasa.gov.

NASA TV can be seen on WKTV 26 Government Channel on Comcast and AT&T U-verse 99 Government Channel 99.

DUE TO THE GOVERNMENT SHUT DOWN, THIS PROGRAM WILL NOT BE AIRING.

Part of the NASA TV broadcasting this month, which is featured on WKTV 26 Government Channel, will include the airing of two spacewalks –the first for 2018 for International Space Station.

On Tuesday, Jan. 23, we will be showcasing the first of two scheduled spacewalks. Coverage of the ISS U.S Spacewalk 47 will begin at 5:30 a.m., with the spacewalk starting at approximately 7:10 a.m. The spacewalk is expected to last about six and half hours.

Expedition 54 Flight Engineer Mark Vande Hei of NASA will lead both excursions, joined by Flight Engineer Scott Tingle for the Jan. 23 spacewalk. The objective of the Jan. 23 spacewalk will be to replace one of two redundant latching end effectors (LEE) on Canadarm2, the station’s robotic arm, which has experienced some degradation of its snaring cables. A spare LEE will replace the current LEE B.

Then on Monday, Jan. 29, we will be featuring the ISS U.S. Spacewalk 48. Coverage begins at 5:30 a.m., with the spacewalk starting at approximately 7:10 a.m. This spacewalk is also expected to last about six and half hours.

Vande Hei will be joined by Flight Engineer Norishige Kanai of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) for the Jan. 29 spacewalk. This spacewalk will be devoted to securing the degraded LEE B on the station’s Mobile Base System rail car as a spare. Similar work was conducted on the robotic arm’s LEE A during a series of spacewalks last October.

These excursions, U.S. spacewalks 47 and 48, will be the third and fourth in Vande Hei’s career and the first for both Tingle and Kanai. These spacewalks are the first for 2018. There have been 2015 spacewalks at the ISS since 1998. 2007 was the year with the most space walks, which was 20. Last year, 2017, there was a total of nine.

For more information on NASA TV or the International Space Station, log on to www.nasa.gov.

NASA TV can be seen on the WKTV 26 Government Channel on Comcast and on AT&T U-verse 99 Government Channel 99