Tag: EVA
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ISS Gets 3 Spacewalks in August for Solar Array Prep
Are NASA’s August Spacewalks About Keeping the ISS Alive or Shutting It Down? Three back-to-back extravehicular activities scheduled for August reveal the ISS in a paradoxical operational moment: NASA is simultaneously installing hardware to expand power capacity and running cable work explicitly tied to the station’s future controlled deorbit. The first of the three EVAs…
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Canadarm2 repairs planned as CRS-34 departs ISS
The Expedition 74 crew aboard the International Space Station have seen yet another busy month of spacewalks, science experiments, and maintenance tasks. The CRS-34 mission undocked from ISS on Tuesday, June 16, at 16:25 UTC prior to its successful splashdown off of southern California the following day. An upcoming maintenance task for the crew involves…
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Axiom Space and Prada Unveil Advanced Cooling Garment for Future Moon Missions
Axiom Space and Prada have unveiled a new Liquid Cooling and Ventilation Garment (LCVG) designed for astronauts who will wear the Axiom Extravehicular Mobility Unit (AxEMU) spacesuit during future lunar missions. The garment serves as the high-performance inner layer of the AxEMU spacesuit and is intended to help astronauts withstand the harsh conditions of the…
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China prepares cargo, crew, and deep space missions, as commercial sector steps towards reusability
China is preparing to launch both cargo and crew missions to its Tiangong space station, as a new cargo freighter is tested in low-Earth orbit and new designs are revealed to expand the orbiting outpost. Celebrating 70 years since the foundation of its space program this year, China is also advancing plans for deep space…
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NASA Inspector General Warns Artemis Spacesuits May Miss 2030
Will NASA’s new spacesuits be ready for Artemis moon landings? NASA’s next-generation spacesuits for the Artemis Program and International Space Station operations may not be ready until after 2030, according to a new NASA Office of Inspector General report released April 21, 2026. The warning signals potential multi-year delays beyond NASA’s current development timeline for…
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China launches crewed Shenzhou-21 mission
China has launched its tenth crew to the Tiangong space station. This was the 16th crewed spaceflight for China’s Shenzhou program overall, which has continually occupied the orbiting outpost since June 2021. The China Manned Space Agency (CMSA) announced the names of the three taikonauts the day before launch. Shenzhou-21 will be commanded by Zhang…
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Artemis spacesuits tested as existing ISS suits are showing their age
As the Artemis program works toward its first lunar landing on the Artemis III mission later this decade, new lunar spacesuits are finally being tested by Axiom Space. Meanwhile, the existing spacesuits aboard the International Space Station (ISS) are showing their age. A new inspector general report detailed risks to the Station’s extra vehicular activity…
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Expedition 73 underway on ISS, crew perform spacewalk
With Expedition 73 now underway, the International Space Station is hosting seven crewmembers again. Thursday saw the astronauts complete the Station’s third spacewalk of the year. The ISS crew is also getting ready for the upcoming arrival of the commercial Axiom-4 mission as well as conducting the usual science and maintenance tasks. Visiting Vehicles The…
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Spacewalks resume from U.S. segment of ISS after six month hiatus
The International Space Station (ISS) kicked off 2025 with a long-awaited return to extravehicular activity (EVA) spacewalk activities from the U.S. segment of the ISS. These spacewalks were sharply curtailed in 2024 due to issues with the aging Space Shuttle-era Extravehicular Mobility Unit suits. Before this latest spacewalk, EVA-90 was the most recent to be…
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China Roundup: Chang Zheng 8A set for debut, Chinese hopper flies 75 km high-altitude test
China’s Chang Zheng 8A rocket is set for its maiden flight from the Hainan commercial spaceport this month. Meanwhile, a Chang Zheng 12A development prototype flew a 75 km high-altitude test flight this week with an uncertain outcome. 2025 has begun with land and sea launches as commercial companies gear up to debut new and…