Aug 22 2016

From The Space Library

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Current revision

MEDIA ADVISORY M16-099 NASA TV to Air US Spacewalk, Briefing

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 of the orbiting complex’s backbone, or truss, Expedition 48 Commander Jeff Williams and Flight Engineer Kate Rubins of NASA 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.

NASA TV will air a briefing to preview the spacewalk activities at 2 p.m. Wednesday, Aug. 24. The briefing participants are:

• Zeb Scoville, spacewalk flight director
• John Mularski, lead spacewalk officer

Reporters may attend the briefing at Johnson or ask questions by calling the Johnson newsroom at 281-483-5111 no later than 1:45 p.m. Aug. 24.

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.

MEDIA ADVISORY M16-098 NASA TV Coverage Set for U.S. Cargo Ship Departure from International Space Station

After delivering almost 5,000 pounds of supplies, experiments and equipment – including a docking adapter for future American commercial crew spacecraft – a SpaceX Dragon cargo craft is set to leave the International Space Station Friday, Aug. 26. NASA Television will provide coverage of Dragon’s departure beginning at 5:45 a.m. EDT.

SpaceX’s Commercial Resupply Service-9 mission arrived on station July 20. The Dragon spacecraft will be detached from the Earth-facing port of the Harmony module using the station’s Canadarm 2 robotic arm. Robotics controllers will send commands to maneuver the spacecraft into place before it’s released by Expedition 48 Flight Engineers Kate Rubins of NASA and Takuya Onishi of the Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) at 6:10 a.m.

The spacecraft will move to a safe distance from the station and fire its engines at 10:56 a.m. to drop out of orbit and descend back to Earth. A parachute-assisted splashdown in the Pacific is expected at 11:47 a.m. about 326 miles west of Baja California. The deorbit burn and splashdown will not air on NASA TV.

A recovery team will retrieve the capsule and about 3,000 pounds of cargo and experiments for researchers and investigators.

In the event of adverse weather conditions in the Pacific, the backup departure and splashdown date is Sunday, Aug. 28.