The task aims to boost the station’s solar power generation capacity by installing new roll-out solar arrays.
Mount New Solar Array in Spacewalk
Kutryk will partner with NASA astronaut Anil Menon for the spacewalk, which is scheduled to last approximately six hours and forty-five minutes. According to Space, the primary objective is to mount a new deployable solar array matrix on the station’s exterior. The operation began at two in the afternoon, with NASA providing live broadcast coverage of the exterior maintenance and installation work.
LIVE: NASA's Anil Menon and @csa_asc's Joshua Kutryk are setting up a new solar array outside the @Space_Station. Today's spacewalk is scheduled to start around 8am ET (1200 UTC) and run for about six and a half hours. https://t.co/xoJPYWty9Z
This mission is the first of two spacewalks assigned to Kutryk and Menon. The second excursion is slated for no earlier than November 5. The astronauts will install the seventh iROSA rollout solar array during the October 29 assignment, followed by the eighth matrix during the subsequent outing.
Increase Power Capacity with iROSA Arrays
The new hardware consists of iROSA arrays designed to unroll directly over the aging legacy solar arrays currently operating on the International Space Station. These newer additions will lift the station’s total electrical generation capacity from roughly 160 kilowatts to approximately 215 kilowatts. Each individual array measures about three meters long when folded, weighs roughly 340 kilograms on Earth, and expands to about six meters after deployment.
The spacewalk is now underway! Astronauts Anil Menon and Joshua Kutryk have started working to set up a new solar array on the @Space_Station. pic.twitter.com/yVT2qACcPQ
NASA official described the unfolding mechanism as resembling slap bracelets that extend automatically using embedded magnets. The expansion process takes approximately 10 minutes per array. Technicians must exercise caution, performing specific cable connections only when that section of the station sits outside direct sunlight to mitigate electrical hazards.
Canadarm2 Robotic Support Operations
The crew will rely heavily on the Canadarm2 robotic arm to transport the massive solar arrays into position and support crew mobility. Menon will ride a platform attached to the robotic arm to move one of the solar units to the installation site. Kutryk will simultaneously translate across the station truss structure to meet him, allowing the pair to secure the new matrix over the older power channels.
