NASA
STS-120 MISSION UPDATE: I thought I’d just post the image above to commemorate today’s successful spacewalk that led to the repair of a solar array wing onboard the International Space Station (ISS). If the repair didn’t go as planned, that array would’ve suffered future structural damage due to its instability (since the wing wasn’t unfurled to its full 115-feet length during deployment last Tuesday...because of a torn panel), possibly leading to that array having to be removed and discarded, and leading to a loss of a very important power source that would've put remaining space station assembly on hold. With the solar array now fully unfurled and working properly, the ISS is receiving more-than-adequate electricity...and the next shuttle flight, STS-122 with Atlantis, remains on track for a December 6 launch. Atlantis was rolled over to the Vehicle Assembly Building at Florida's Kennedy Space Center today, in preparation for mating to its external fuel tank and twin solid rocket boosters.
NASA / George Shelton
I thought I’d also show this image below. The artist's concept is of Space Station Freedom (which evolved into the ISS during the early 90’s once Russia joined the project), and that NASA TV screenshot came from today’s spacewalk. Nice to know this neat little artwork is close to becoming a complete reality.
NASA
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