Russian cosmonauts to perform 4 spacewalks by yearend - NASA
MOSCOW. Nov 7 (Interfax) - Russian crewmembers of the International Space Station (ISS) will perform two spacewalks in November and another two in December 2022, the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) said in a statement on its website.
According to the website, the next extravehicular activity, EVA 55, of the Russian cosmonauts is scheduled for November 17 to prepare a heat exchanger for being moved from the Rassvet module to the Nauka module. The spacewalk will begin at 5:20 p.m. and will last for about seven hours.
The next spacewalk, EVA 56, is due to begin at 2:15 p.m. on November 25. The European Robotic Arm (ERA) will be used for the first time to work on the Russian segment. It will help relocate the heat exchanger from Rassvet to Nauka. The spacewalk will last for about seven hours.
EVA 57 will be performed on December 6, NASA said, adding that the ERA would be used again to move the airlock chamber from Rassvet to Nauka. The spacewalk will begin at 10:20 a.m. and will last for about seven hours.
The fourth spacewalk, EVA 58, is planned for December 22 to continue the relocation of the airlock chamber, NASA said. This extravehicular activity will begin at 3 a.m. and will last for about seven hours.
Russian cosmonaut Sergei Prokopyev said on September 1 that the current Russian crew of the ISS would go on five spacewalks, including the first one due on November 17.
Cosmonaut Anna Kikina, designated to operate the ERA, said on October 19 that the ERA would be used for the first time during EVA 56 and EVA 57.
The ERA built by the Germany company Fokker Space is a standard piece of Nauka electromechanical maintenance equipment. It will serve as the main robotic arm of the station's Russian segment and will be used to install and uninstall payloads on the station surface, to monitor the condition of the station's exterior, and to provide remotely controlled movement of cosmonauts at a portable workplace during spacewalks.