NASA prepares final two station solar-array spacewalks
The October 29 and November 5 outings are planned to complete an eight-array power upgrade for the International Space Station.
Two outings would finish the power augmentation
NASA plans two spacewalks to install the seventh and eighth International Space Station Roll-Out Solar Arrays, completing a multiyear upgrade to the orbital laboratory’s power system. The agency will preview the work during a news conference Tuesday, October 20, at 2 p.m. Eastern.
NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk are assigned to both outings. U.S. spacewalk 100 is scheduled for October 29, followed by spacewalk 101 on November 5.
NASA will stream the briefing and later publish more detailed coverage plans. Spacewalk schedules can move because of station operations, crew readiness, hardware condition or other mission priorities.
Each array serves a separate power channel
During the first outing, the astronauts are expected to install and deploy a roll-out array on the station’s 2A electrical channel. The second spacewalk targets the 3B channel.
The compact arrays launch folded and are deployed over portions of the station’s older rigid solar wings. They supplement the original system rather than replacing every existing panel.
NASA says the full set of eight new arrays will increase available power by as much as 30 percent, raising generating capacity from about 160 kilowatts to roughly 215 kilowatts. Additional power supports research, life-support equipment and normal station operations.
The upgrade also supports eventual station retirement
The agency specifically notes that the added power will support the station’s safe and controlled deorbit. NASA and its partners are planning for the laboratory’s eventual retirement while continuing research and operations in the meantime.
If completed as scheduled, the outings will be the 285th and 286th spacewalks devoted to station assembly, maintenance and upgrades. The numbering of U.S. spacewalks is separate from the total number conducted by all partner programs.
A spacewalk is not routine simply because crews have performed many of them. Astronauts work in pressurized suits outside the station while teams on the ground monitor power, tools, communications and the timeline.
The October 20 briefing will include program and flight-operations officials who can explain the sequence, contingency planning and crew tasks. Viewers should rely on NASA’s live page and station updates for final times, because the October 29 and November 5 dates remain operational plans rather than immutable appointments.
The two arrays are the final planned units in this specific augmentation series. Completing them would close an installation campaign while leaving ordinary maintenance work ahead. Power production also varies with orbital lighting, equipment condition and station demand, so the cited capacities describe system capability rather than a constant output at every moment.
Menon and Kutryk will prepare through procedure reviews, suit checks and ground simulations. Mission controllers can modify, defer or terminate an outing if hardware, communications or crew conditions do not meet flight rules.