Russian cosmonauts conduct spacewalk to install solar arrays and examine radiator coolant leak on ISS

Cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko (red stripes) and Nikolai Chub (blue stripes) prepare a synthetic radar communications system for installation during their seven-hour and 41-minute spacewalk. (Image courtesy: NASA)

Two Russian cosmonauts embarked on a spacewalk lasting more than seven hours on October 25 to accomplish several crucial tasks outside the International Space Station (ISS). They installed a synthetic radar communications system on the Russian segment of the ISS and deployed a nanosatellite to assess solar sail technology. Additionally, the cosmonauts conducted an examination of the external backup radiator situated on the Nauka multipurpose laboratory module. This radiator had experienced a coolant leak issue on October 9.

The spacewalk was carried out by Roscosmos cosmonauts Oleg Kononenko and Nikolai Chub and lasted for a total of seven hours and 41 minutes.

Solar sail fails to unfurl fully, Radar system panel issue detected

As per the American space agency NASA's report, the nanosatellite's solar sail didn't unfurl to the extent observable by cameras during its departure from the station. Additionally, one of the radar system's four panels couldn't be fully deployed during the spacewalk, and this necessary adjustment will be made at a later time.

Unexpected coolant bubble release during radiator inspection

During the inspection of the radiator, a coolant bubble was unexpectedly released at the point of the leak, as reported by NASA in its blog. In the blog, NASA also said that the coolant did not come into contact with cosmonauts' suits.

Spacewalking cosmonauts ensure Space Station purity with contaminant cleanup

"At the end of the spacewalk, before reentering the Poisk airlock, the two spacewalking cosmonauts as usual inspected the Roscosmos Orlan spacesuits and the tools used during the spacewalk to look for signs of coolant and wipe off any coolant as necessary. The cosmonauts also wiped down their suits and tools as usual after repressurization to further reduce introduction of trace contaminates into the space station environment. Additional filtration will then be used inside the space station in order to quickly scrub the atmosphere of any remaining traces of contaminant," NASA wrote.

International Space Station marks 268th spacewalk

This particular spacewalk was the 268th mission dedicated to supporting the assembly, maintenance, and enhancement of the International Space Station. While it was the sixth spacewalk for cosmonaut Kononenko, who was identifiable by his Orlan spacesuit adorned with red stripes, for cosmonaut Chub, this expedition was his first spacewalk and he wore a spacesuit with blue stripes.

Nauka Module's backup radiator leaks identified by Roscosmos

Roscosmos had previously said that the identified leak was indeed located on the backup radiator of the Nauka module, which is affixed to the exterior of the module. This radiator was initially transported to the space station on the Rassvet module during the space shuttle mission STS-132 back in 2010. Subsequently, it was transferred to the Nauka module during a spacewalk conducted by Roscosmos in April. It is worth noting that the primary radiator on the Nauka module continues to function properly, providing cooling to the module without any adverse effects on the crew or the operations of the space station.

NASA delays spacewalks for safety reasons

In the interest of safety, NASA decided to delay two of its scheduled spacewalks this month. The spacewalk initially planned for October 12, which involved NASA astronaut Loral O'Hara and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Andreas Mogensen, has been rescheduled for a later date this year, although specific details regarding the new date were not provided. Similarly, the spacewalk scheduled for October 20, featuring NASA astronauts Loral O'Hara and Jasmin Moghbeli, has been postponed to October 30.