Tue, Dec 19, 2006
Panel Retracts With Some... Coaxing
This time, it was personal -- but STS-116 spacewalkers Robert
Curbeam and Christer Fuglesang rose to the challenge, and completed
efforts to retract the port solar array on the International Space
Station’s P6 truss segment Monday. The
final section was folded about 6:55 pm EST.
NASA reports Curbeam and Fuglesang freed up the array for
retraction with several techniques -- pulling guide wires, flipping
grommets, and pushing panel hinges. The spacewalkers also shook the
solar array panel (they resisted the urge to kick the blasted
thing.)
"It's very important from a personal standpoint," said Mission
Specialist Joan Higginbotham before the fourth spacewalk got
underway. "I think we're all very Type A personalities -- I think
my crew would agree with me there -- so we always like to
accomplish the task that we are given."
Another objective of Monday’s spacewalk was to collect
information that could prove useful when the opposite side of the
array is retracted during the STS-117 mission in March.
The start of the spacewalk was a historic moment for Curbeam,
who became the first astronaut to conduct four spacewalks during a
single mission. This is Fuglesang’s third. Expedition 14
Flight Engineer Suni Williams conducted one.
Pilot Bill Oefelein coordinated the spacewalk activities.
Higginbotham and Williams were at the controls of the
station’s robot arm, Canadarm2.
As Aero-News reported,
Discovery is scheduled to undock from the ISS at 5:09 pm.
Tuesday, ending STS-116’s eight-day stay at the station. The
orbiter is scheduled to return home Friday afternoon.
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