The European Space Agency (ESA) has shared a timelapse video showing a spacewalk to install a new solar array on the International Space Station using images captured by Japan Aerospace Exploration Agency (JAXA) astronaut and Space Station commander Akihiko Hoshide.
In the 87-second video, we see ESA astronaut Thomas Pesquet and National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) astronaut Shane Kimbrough start the installation process of an ISS Roll-Out Solar Array (IROSA) on June 16, 2021. The ESA says the array ‘had to be taken from their storage area outside the Space Station and passed from spacewalker to spacewalker to the worksite [where the] arrays were to be secured, unfolded, connected and then unfurled.’
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The mission didn’t go quite as planned though. As the ESA explains in the above video’s description, ‘a small technical problem in Shane’s spacesuit required him to return to the airlock and restart his Display and Control Module,’ which ‘provides astronauts with continuous information on pressure, temperature and other vital data during a spacewalk.’ While Shane wasn’t in any danger due to the issue, it did delay the installation of the array, which required another space walk on June 20, 2021 to complete. That space walk was also captured though, completing the two-part series of the first IROSA installation:
Below is a selfie captured by Shane, showing the IROSA in the reflection of his spacesuit’s visor:
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According to the ESA, ‘Over 200 experiments are planned during Thomas’ time in space, with 40 European ones and 12 new experiments led by the French space agency, [Centre national d’études spatiales (CNES)].’
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