CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. — Spacewalking astronauts replaced a failed electrical unit at the International Space Station on Wednesday, restoring full power to the orbiting lab. The space station had been operating since spring with only seven of its eight solar-power channels. Wednesday's work by Reid Wiseman and Butch Wilmore — NASA's second spacewalk in two weeks — brought the energy capability back up to 100 percent. The spacewalkers encountered balky bolts but still managed to complete the job in the allotted time, with less than two minutes to spare. "Yoo-hoo!" they cheered as NASA declared victory.
With their main job completed, the spacewalkers installed a new camera, and moved around various camera and wireless radio systems. The relocations are needed to get ready for the eventual arrival of new commercial crew vehicles. That's still a few years away. "It's been a very successful day," Mission Control said as the 6.5-hour spacewalk drew to a close. A Russian spacewalk, meanwhile, is on tap for next Wednesday.
IN-DEPTH
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