Friday, 5 June 2009Two astronauts aboard the International Space Station will conduct a spacewalk on Friday to install new equipment and test new Russian-made spacesuits, Russia's Mission Control said.
Russian Commander Gennady Padalka and U.S. Flight Engineer Michael Barratt, wearing Orlan-MK computerized spacesuits, will install three antennas for the Kurs auto-docking system to receive a Russian MIM-2 small research module, which will be delivered on board the next Progress cargo spacecraft.
The five-hour spacewalk is scheduled to start at 10:45 Moscow time (06:45 GMT), Mission Control said.
The Orlan-MK's main improvement is the replacement of the radio-telemetry equipment in the Portable Life Support System backpack which contains a mini-computer. This computer processes data from the spacesuit's various systems and provides a malfunction warning. It then outlines a contingency plan which is displayed on an LCD screen on the right chest part of the spacesuit.
Astronauts previously had to memorize contingency plans.
During the current 180-day mission, the six-member ISS crew will receive and unload three Russian Progress craft and a Japanese HTV-1 space freighter, conduct two spacewalks and carry out a series of scientific experiments.
On June 10, Padalka and Barrat will work in the depressurized docking bay of the Zvezda module to install a docking cone for MIM-2.
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Friday, 5 June 2009
Ria Novosti
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