Two astronauts floated outside the International Space Station on Friday&nbsp;to replace ageing batteries for the laboratory’s solar power system, an upgrade needed to keep the outpost running into the next decade, NASA said.

NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi&nbsp;switched their spacesuits to battery power at 6:37 a.m. EST to begin the spacewalk, which is expected to last&nbsp;for about six and a half hours.

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"What a view!" <a href="https://twitter.com/Astro_Soichi?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Astro_Soichi</a> and Kate Rubins are now working outside the <a href="https://twitter.com/Space_Station?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw">@Space_Station</a>, nearly 250 miles (402 kilometers) above the blue orb that's teeming with life. 🌍 <a href="https://t.co/rkkRP3LC7R">pic.twitter.com/rkkRP3LC7R</a>
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Rubins and Noguchi will traverse out the station’s backbone truss structure to the far left (port) side set of solar arrays, the first pair of solar arrays deployed in December 2000. The spacewalkers will work together to complete the installation and configuration of modification kits on solar arrays 4B and 2B, which will enable new solar arrays to be installed to augment the space station’s power supply.&nbsp;

Following solar array modification kit configuration, the Rubins will conduct cable routing for the Bartolomeo platform Parking Position Interface (PAPOS) on the Columbus module, Noguchi will replace a Wireless Video System External Transceivers Assembly (WETA), and the pair will perform other get-ahead work as time permits.

This is the 236th spacewalk in support of space station assembly.

The US&nbsp;National Aeronautics and Space Administration expects it will take about three years to complete the space station’s power system upgrade, which will keep it operational until at least 2024.

Before this month’s spacewalks, ground control teams used the station’s robotic arm to move the new batteries into position and remove the old ones. This robotics work cut the number of spacewalks needed for the project from six to two, NASA said.

The solar-powered station draws power from the batteries when it flies in darkness, circling about 250 miles (400 km) above Earth.

The space station, which is about the size of a five-bedroom house, is a $100 billion research laboratory, owned and operated by 16 nations.

Two astronauts floated outside the International Space Station on Friday to replace ageing batteries for the laboratory’s solar power system, an upgrade needed to keep the outpost running into the next decade, NASA said.

Two astronauts floated outside the International Space Station on Friday to replace ageing batteries for the laboratory’s solar power system, an upgrade needed to keep the outpost running into the next decade, NASA said. NASA astronaut Kate Rubins and Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut Soichi Noguchi switched their spacesuits to battery power at 6:37 a.m. EST to begin the spacewalk, which is expected to last for about six and a half hours. "What a view!" @Astro_Soichi and Kate Rubins are now working outside the @Space_Station, nearly 250 miles (402 kilometers) above the blue orb that's teeming with life. 🌍 pic.twitter.com/rkkRP3LC7R — NASA (@NASA) March 5, 2021 × Rubins and Noguchi will traverse out the station’s backbone truss structure to the far left (port) side set of solar arrays, the first pair of solar arrays deployed in December 2000. The spacewalkers will work together to complete the installation and configuration of modification kits on solar arrays 4B and 2B, which will enable new solar arrays to be installed to augment the space station’s power supply. Following solar array modification kit configuration, the Rubins will conduct cable routing for the Bartolomeo platform Parking Position Interface (PAPOS) on the Columbus module, Noguchi will replace a Wireless Video System External Transceivers Assembly (WETA), and the pair will perform other get-ahead work as time permits. This is the 236th spacewalk in support of space station assembly. The US National Aeronautics and Space Administration expects it will take about three years to complete the space station’s power system upgrade, which will keep it operational until at least 2024. Before this month’s spacewalks, ground control teams used the station’s robotic arm to move the new batteries into position and remove the old ones. This robotics work cut the number of spacewalks needed for the project from six to two, NASA said. The solar-powered station draws power from the batteries when it flies in darkness, circling about 250 miles (400 km) above Earth. The space station, which is about the size of a five-bedroom house, is a $100 billion research laboratory, owned and operated by 16 nations.

NASA astronauts begin spacewalk to upgrade station power system

With more private spaceship traffic expected at the International Space Station in the coming years, two spacewalking US astronauts installed a special parking spot for them on Friday. 
 
Americans Jeff Williams and Kate Rubins floated outside the orbiting laboratory for a spacewalk lasting five hours and 58 minutes to attach the first of two international docking adaptors.&nbsp;The astronauts spent more than two hours tying down the adaptor, after which robotic machinery at the space station completed the hard mate, making the attachment permanent. 
 
&quot;With that, we have a new port of call,&quot; NASA commentator Rob Navias said as the space station flew over Singapore at 10:40am (14:40 GMT). 
 
During the rest of the spacewalk, astronauts connected power and data cables for the adaptor.&nbsp;The fittings will enable the space station to share power and data with visiting spaceships. 
 
The spacewalk was the fourth for Williams, a veteran astronaut who on Wednesday will surpass US astronaut Scott Kelly&#39;s record for the most cumulative days in space for an American.&nbsp;Kelly has 520 days in space over his career.&nbsp;Williams will have 534 days in space by the time he wraps up his stint at the ISS and returns to Earth in early September.&nbsp; 
 
The spacewalk was Rubins&#39;s first. She is the 12th woman to walk in space. 
 
 
&#39;Gateway to the future&#39;&nbsp; 
 
NASA describes the docking adaptor as a &quot;metaphorical gateway to a future&quot; that will allow a new generation of US spacecraft,&nbsp;the first since the space shuttle program ended in 2011,&nbsp;to carry astronauts to the space station. 
 
The second docking adaptor is expected to be launched in late 2017, Navias said.&nbsp;ISS operations integration manager Kenneth Todd called Friday&#39;s installation a &quot;very significant milestone on the path to establishing commercial crew capability&quot;. 
 
Built by Boeing, the circular adaptor measures around 42 inches (one metre) tall and about 63 inches wide.&nbsp;The adaptors will work with Boeing&#39;s CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX&#39;s Crew Dragon, two spaceships under construction that are planned to ferry astronauts to the space station. 
 
The docking adaptor is more sophisticated than past equipment because it will allow automatic parking instead of the current grapple and berthing process, which is managed by astronauts. 
 
Spacewalk September 1 
 
During the last US spacewalk on January 15, a problem with American Tim Kopra&#39;s spacesuit allowed a small amount of water to build up inside his helmet by the end of the outing.&nbsp;It was the latest in a series of spacesuit issues, but not as severe as an emergency in 2013 when Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano&#39;s helmet flooded, forcing him to end his spacewalk early. 
 
Williams experienced a problem with an earpiece in his suit near the end of Friday&#39;s outing, briefly interfering with his ability to hear mission control, but NASA said the issue was not serious.&nbsp; 
 
The US space agency is planning another spacewalk on September 1 to retract one of the thermal radiators outside the space station.&nbsp;Astronauts unsuccessfully tried to push it back into position last year.

(AFP) 
&nbsp;

NASA's docking adaptor will allow a new generation of US spacecraft to carry astronauts to the space station

With more private spaceship traffic expected at the International Space Station in the coming years, two spacewalking US astronauts installed a special parking spot for them on Friday. Americans Jeff Williams and Kate Rubins floated outside the orbiting laboratory for a spacewalk lasting five hours and 58 minutes to attach the first of two international docking adaptors. The astronauts spent more than two hours tying down the adaptor, after which robotic machinery at the space station completed the hard mate, making the attachment permanent. "With that, we have a new port of call," NASA commentator Rob Navias said as the space station flew over Singapore at 10:40am (14:40 GMT). During the rest of the spacewalk, astronauts connected power and data cables for the adaptor. The fittings will enable the space station to share power and data with visiting spaceships. The spacewalk was the fourth for Williams, a veteran astronaut who on Wednesday will surpass US astronaut Scott Kelly's record for the most cumulative days in space for an American. Kelly has 520 days in space over his career. Williams will have 534 days in space by the time he wraps up his stint at the ISS and returns to Earth in early September. The spacewalk was Rubins's first. She is the 12th woman to walk in space. 'Gateway to the future' NASA describes the docking adaptor as a "metaphorical gateway to a future" that will allow a new generation of US spacecraft, the first since the space shuttle program ended in 2011, to carry astronauts to the space station. The second docking adaptor is expected to be launched in late 2017, Navias said. ISS operations integration manager Kenneth Todd called Friday's installation a "very significant milestone on the path to establishing commercial crew capability". Built by Boeing, the circular adaptor measures around 42 inches (one metre) tall and about 63 inches wide. The adaptors will work with Boeing's CST-100 Starliner and SpaceX's Crew Dragon, two spaceships under construction that are planned to ferry astronauts to the space station. The docking adaptor is more sophisticated than past equipment because it will allow automatic parking instead of the current grapple and berthing process, which is managed by astronauts. Spacewalk September 1 During the last US spacewalk on January 15, a problem with American Tim Kopra's spacesuit allowed a small amount of water to build up inside his helmet by the end of the outing. It was the latest in a series of spacesuit issues, but not as severe as an emergency in 2013 when Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano's helmet flooded, forcing him to end his spacewalk early. Williams experienced a problem with an earpiece in his suit near the end of Friday's outing, briefly interfering with his ability to hear mission control, but NASA said the issue was not serious. The US space agency is planning another spacewalk on September 1 to retract one of the thermal radiators outside the space station. Astronauts unsuccessfully tried to push it back into position last year. (AFP)

Special parking installed at NASA space station for expected private traffic in future

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NASA astronauts begin spacewalk to upgrade station power system

Special parking installed at NASA space station for expected private traffic in future