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Station crew goes outside to free stuck antenna BY WILLIAM HARWOOD STORY WRITTEN FOR CBS NEWS "SPACE PLACE" & USED WITH PERMISSION Posted: February 22, 2007 Despite a fogged-up space helmet, cosmonaut Mikhail Tyurin cut through one of four support struts to free a jammed navigation antenna on a Progress supply ship docked to the space station's Zvezda command module. Once free, Tyurin and station commander Michael Lopez-Alegria manually pulled the antenna back away from the station and tied it in place, completing the primary objective of today's spacewalk. The antenna jammed up against the Zvezda module's aft port when it failed to fully retract before docking last October. Russian flight controllers wanted to make sure it wouldn't cause any problems when the supply craft undocks in April. Tyurin and Lopez-Alegria were unable to manually pull the antenna away, prompting the use of a NASA tool similar to garden shears. Tyurin made two cuts through a strut in the retraction drive mechanism, allowing the spacewalkers to pull the antenna back about six inches. They used wire ties to secure it before turning their attention to other planned tasks. Throughout today's spacewalk, Tyurin has had problems with is Orlan spacesuit's sublimator system, which helps provide cooling. He also reported helmet fogging. "Misha, do you see this?" Lopez-Alegria asked at one point. "I'm sorry, what Michael?" "Do you see the (sublimator) snowflakes?" "No, I don't see anything," Tyurin replied. "Are you blind, Misha?" "Yep, I don't see anything. I don't see space, I don't see the Earth, I just see the guide here." Despite the problems, the spacewalkers were able to complete the antenna retraction and later, Tyurin reported the sublimator appeared to be working better. Other activities planned during the spacewalk:
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A Russian-based spacewalk outside the International Space Station scheduled for February 22 is previewed in this news briefing held at the Johnson Space Center. The EVA's primary task is retracting a stuck antenna on a Russian resupply ship to ensure the craft can undock safely in April.
The United Launch Alliance Delta 2 rocket roared away from Cape Canaveral Saturday carrying a quintet of NASA probes that seek to understand the physics behind auroral displays.
The STS-117 astronauts meet the press during the traditional pre-flight news conference held at the Johnson Space Center a month prior to launch. The six-person crew will deliver and activate a solar-power module for the International Space Station.
After a six-hour trip along the three-and-a-half-mile crawlerway from the Vehicle Assembly Building, space shuttle Atlantis arrives at launch pad 39A for the STS-117 mission.
Space shuttle Atlantis emerges from its processing hangar at dawn February 7 for the short trip to the Vehicle Assembly Building at Kennedy Space Center's Complex 39.