Breaking News

Iss, new spacewalk for AstroLuca: it's the most difficult

December 2, 2019

Third spacewalk within the Beyond mission for ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano who today, together with NASA colleague Andrew Morgan, left the International Space Station (ISS) for maintenance operations on the Alpha Magnetic Spectrometer (Ams- 02), the so-called antimatter hunter.Leaving the ISS hatchback, Luca Parmitano flew over the robotic arm to reach his first workstation on the Ams-02 instrument and begin the installation of the new Uttps cooling system (Upgraded Tracker Thermal Pump System). The walk is part of a series of extravehicular activities (Eva) that Nasa has defined as one of the most complex ever performed since its repair on the Hubble space telescope in 2009.

The installation of the new cooling pump should last about seven and a half hours and the European Space Agency (ESA) astronaut will ride the robotic arm several times to transport and then install the new component.Working hanging upside down, Luca Parmitano completed the wiring, then moved on to the more complicated part of the operation, namely the connection of the cut pipes in the previous spacewalks.

A very memorable #Thanksgiving dinner on @Space_Station with our international crew. We have been sharing the tradition of turkey, stuffing, mashed potatoes, mustard greens, and the essential cranberry sauce. . . still in the shape of the can. pic.twitter.com/fzjZTv1sY0

– Andrew Morgan (@AstroDrewMorgan) December 1, 2019

Also this time Luca Parmitano has the role of leader of the Eva and it is recognizable for the red stripes on the white suit. The spacewalk – broadcast live by Nasa / Esa – follows those of 15 and 22 November, in which the two astronauts had removed the anti-debris panel of the AS by cutting the old pipes to which the new pump will be connected today. Inside the cumbersome container that AstroLuca brought with him, in addition to the new mechanical pumps, there is also a new accumulator, a filling and refilling system for carbon dioxide, the new control electronics including monitoring sensors, an additional radiator and a new anti-debris cover.

"The Republic will always fight in defense of freedom of information, for its readers and for all those who care about the principles of democracy and civil society"
Carlo Verdelli
SUBSCRIBE TO REPUBLIC

<! –

We are not a party, we do not seek consensus, we do not receive public funding, but we are standing thanks to the readers who buy us at the newsstands every morning, look at our website or subscribe to Rep :.
If you are interested in continuing to listen to another bell, perhaps imperfect and some irritating days, continue to do so with conviction.
Mario Calabresi
Support journalism
Subscribe to the Republic

<! –