by NASA canceled a spacewalk at the International Space Station today (June 24) after a space coolant leak in the hatch.
NASA astronauts Tracy Caldwell Dyson and Mike Barratt were told by Mission Control at 8:52 am EDT (1252 GMT) to stop the planned 6.5-hour spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS). The pair had already switched over to internal power in their suits at 8:46 am (1246 GMT), meaning the spacewalk had technically begun. After the cancellation, the astronauts opened the hatch into the ISS at 9:51 am EDT (1351 GMT), officially ending the spacewalk.
While being broadcast on the NASA Television livestream, they reported “literally water everywhere” as they moved their suit to internal power to prepare for the extravehicular activity. The leak appeared to come from a servicing and cooling umbilical (SCU) on Dyson’s space suit, she reported. Although the situation was serious, the astronauts were not in any danger due to the leak.
NASA released a brief official statement following the cancellation, adding that additional information will follow on the agency’s ISS blog. They canceled the call because it was unclear how much water was left in Dyson’s suit after the leak, as a precautionary measure, officials added on NASA Television.
“I could see the ice crystals were flowing out there, and then, just like a snow machine, ice was forming at that port on the SCU,” Dyson told Mission Control. The SCU is designed to connect to the ISS airlock as astronauts in the hatch prepare for the final stages of disconnection for the EVA. They were still in the hatch when the leak occurred, and the outer door was open, but it closed a minute after the end of the spaceway. “It was quite a snowstorm,” astronaut Butch Wilmore said during a NASA live stream.
This is the second time this particular spacewalk has been postponed, after an attempt on June 13 by another group of astronauts (Matt Dominick and Tracy Dyson) was postponed due to a “spacesuit discomfort” issue with Matt Dominick. A July 2nd spacewalk is also planned, but it is unclear whether that will go ahead under these circumstances.
The total duration of the spacewalk was 31 minutes, based on the time elapsed between switching the suits to internal power and repressurizing the crew airlock. That brings Tracy Dyson’s total EVA time to 23 hours and 20 minutes over four spacewalks, and Mike Barratt’s total time to 5 hours and 37 minutes over three EVAs.
Related: NASA halts International Space Station walk due to ‘spacesuit discomfort’
The spacewalk was running slightly behind its expected start at 8 a.m. EDT (1200 GMT) due to some minor issues with strings and other materials, but that was within normal range until the duo reported ice (water) crystals. coming from outer space.
“The spacewalk was canceled for today due to a leak in the spacesuit’s cooling unit water loop that started immediately after the suits were put on internal battery power,” an announcer said on NASA Television shortly after the spacewalk. cancel. “The crew is now moving back into the airlock and closing … the hatch, then they will begin the repressurization process.”
Conditions were freezing inside the hatch during repressurization. “It’s a little snowy here, but not as bad as it was … I still have ice on my gloves and on my helmet a little bit,” Dyson said.
Dyson later told him that she would stay on the spacesuit’s battery power, as she was concerned about the water leak affecting the umbilical connectors for the ISS. Mission Control told her it wasn’t likely to be a problem, but said she could stay on battery power if she wanted to.
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The spacewalk was supposed to pick up faulty communications equipment, called a radio frequency group, and Dyson was expected to swab the ISS exterior to collect evidence of microorganisms in extreme microgravity environments.
Monday’s EVA was intended to be the first of two future spacewalks focused on ongoing science and maintenance of the orbiting laboratory. (NASA originally planned three, but plans to do just two after the June 13 attempt.)
Coolant leaks have frequently disrupted planned spacewalks in recent years. In March 2022, water was discovered in an astronaut’s helmet after an EVA, prompting a seven-month hiatus in the spacewalks. And in 2013, Italian astronaut Luca Parmitano’s helmet filled horribly with water during an EVA.
This story was updated at 10:29 a.m. EDT with information about the water capacity of Dyson’s suit.
