Non-Urgent Antenna Replacement EVA Mission Delayed Until Further Notice

The National Air and Space Administration has postponed an upcoming spacewalk originally planned for November 30th due to a debris notification encompassing the region surrounding the International Space Station. The operation was not an urgent mission, with plenty of time to accommodate the delay, said the agency.

The planned spacewalk is focused on replacing an S-band Antenna Subassembly with an available spare already carried externally aboard the station's truss structure. When it takes place, if the crew remains unchanged, astronauts Thomas Marshburn and Kayla Barron will work by the Port 1 truss to replace the piece responsible for the Tracking and Data Relay Satellite System. NASA notes the degradation of performance has had limited impact on station operations, but mission managers prefer to retain communications redundancy, especially the low-rate S-band systems and higher rate KU-band systems to relay video. The operation has been the focus of recent efforts of the Expedition 66 flight engineers as they prepared the tools and reviewed procedures. 

Working with fellow astronaut Raja Chari, Marshburn and Barron organized the tethers, cameras, and pistol grip needed, and joined Mark Vande Hei and Maurer for a procedures conference with ground crew at NASA to ensure the walk goes smoothly when the time comes. 

When complete, the spacewalk should take 6.5 hours from beginning to end, with Marshburn positioned at the end of the Canadarm2 robotic appendage operated by ESA astronaut Matthias Maurer from inside the station. The occasion will mark the 245th spacewalk in support of the ISS, as well as the 13th walk in 2021. The EVA crew will see their first external operation since they arrived at the station in early November aboard the Crew-3 Mission. The finalized date and time of the option will be announced through NASA's website, with the operation streamed throughout. 

FMI: www.nasa.gov