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First Discovery Spacewalk Ends in Success

It was carried out by two shuttle astronauts

Apr 9, 2010 13:48 GMT  ·  By
Spacewalker Rick Mastracchi, an STS-131 mission specialist, is seen exiting the Quest airlock on the ISS, before beginning the first EVA of the mission
   Spacewalker Rick Mastracchi, an STS-131 mission specialist, is seen exiting the Quest airlock on the ISS, before beginning the first EVA of the mission

After more than 6 and a half hours of working outside of the International Space Station (ISS), two NASA astronauts managed to successfully complete the chores they were entrusted with. Now, back inside the orbital facility, shuttle mission specialists Rick Mastracchio and Clayton Anderson boast having moved a new, massive ammonia tank from Discovery's payload bay to a new location on the international lab. The tank will remain there provisionally, as the old one is removed, Space reports.

The extra-vehicular activity (EVA) was not without issues, NASA Mission Control experts say. At one point, the bulky tank got stuck inside the payload bay, and the two astronauts had to use a pry bar to get it to move. After this obstacle was cleared, everything went on smoothly, and that cargo was secured to its provisional docking site. During the next two EVA planned as part of the STS-131 mission, the same two spacewalkers will remove one of the old ammonia tanks from the station, and will place it in the orbiter's bay. Afterwards, the new piece of equipment will be secured at its permanent location.

These tanks are of vital importance for the ISS' thermal control system. They are very large containers, weighing about 1,700 pounds, or 771 kilograms, and are filled with the toxic chemical. In the particular conditions on the orbital facility, the substance acts as a coolant, helping maintain a constant temperature aboard. Once the old, depleted tank is returned to NASA, engineers at the agency will start refurbishing the component, and will then fill it back again, in case it is needed back on the station. Also during the first EVA, the two astronauts removed a Japanese science experiment from the outer hull of the ISS, and replaced a damaged sensor.

“Outside the station, the first spacewalk is going on. Inside the station, we moved four racks from MPLM [the Multi Purpose Logistics Module Leonardo] to ISS. Big moving day!” twittered JAXA astronaut Soichi Noguchi, who is a member of the Expedition 23 crew aboard the outpost. After today's work, the 13 astronauts currently in orbit will rest for a bit, ahead of Sunday's second planned EVA, also featuring Mastracchio and Anderson. The two have just performed their fourth spacewalk. Once the current mission is over, they will have performed six each.