Two astronauts ventured outside the International Space Station (ISS) to attempt to install the first of six new Boeing-built solar arrays \u2014 part of a program to increase the station\u2019s electrical power generation capacity as its science and research demands increase and future expansion plans continue.<\/p>\n
The Extravehicular Activity (EVA) \u2013 officially known as US EVA-74 \u2013 began at 12:11 UTC \/ 08:11 EDT when Thomas Pesquet from the European Space Agency (ESA) and Shane Kimbrough from NASA took their spacesuits to battery power before exiting the Quest Airlock to begin their work.<\/p>\n
A series of issues with Shane\u2019s suit and with unfolding of the IROSA solar panel ended the EVA before all the planned tasks could be accomplished.<\/p>\n<\/p>\n
IROSA background<\/b><\/p>\n
The eight original Solar Array Wings (SAWs) on the ISS, which each produce around 30 kilowatts (kW) of power for a total of about 250kW are beginning to show signs of degradation, with the oldest array now having been in space since 2000 when the P6 truss and associated arrays was delivered to the station by Shuttle Endeavour\u2019s STS-97 crew.<\/p>\n
With over 20 years of use, and normal degradation of solar arrays, the eight SAWs now only produce around 160kW of power \u2013 against a backdrop of rising power demands from the station\u2019s increasing users.<\/p>\n
This led the Station program to develop the ISS Power Augmentation (IPA) plan, which called for adding six additional solar arrays to the station in order to restore the outpost\u2019s power generation to its original levels.<\/p>\n
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