[sarex] EXP-14/STS-116 LATEST NEWS

[Arthur Rowe]

SUBMITTED BY ARTHUR N1ORC - AMSAT A/C #31468

LATEST NEWS

Space walkers Perform Electrical Work, Move Carts

Mission Specialists Robert Curbeam and Christer Fuglesang took on the 
roles of electricians and movers during STS-116’s second spacewalk at 
the International Space Station. During the 5-hour excursion, which 
ended at 7:41 p.m. EST Thursday, they rearranged the station’s power 
system from a temporary status to a permanent setup and relocated two 
equipment carts.

To prepare the station for the spacewalkers’ electrical work, flight 
controllers sent a barrage of commands to power down roughly half of the 
station’s systems.

The spacewalk kicked off at 2:41 p.m., and Curbeam and Fuglesang quickly 
went to work rewiring two of the station’s four power channels. After 
they finished the connections, flight controllers began sending commands 
at 4:45 p.m. to power up the electrical systems in their new configuration.

The remaining two channels will be rewired during the mission’s third 
spacewalk, slated for Saturday. The STS-116 crew is performing the 
electrical work to bring power generated by the P4 solar arrays on line 
for use by the station's systems and prepare for more arrays to be added 
next year.

The duo then turned their attention to the relocation of two crew 
equipment translation aid carts. This cleared the way for the station’s 
mobile transporter rail car to move down the station's rail system to 
the S1 truss at a later date in preparation for the STS-117 mission next 
spring. The final task of the spacewalk was the rerouting of cables on 
the Z1 truss.

Pilot Bill Oefelein coordinated the spacewalk activities. Expedition 14 
Flight Engineer Sunita Williams and STS-116 Mission Specialist Joan 
Higginbotham operated the station’s robotic arm.

In other activities, STS-116 and Expedition 14 crew members continued 
cargo transfers between Space Shuttle Discovery and the station.

For the latest news and information on the International Space Station 
and the Expedition 14 crew, please visit the main station page. + Read 
more <http://www.nasa.gov/station>