MOSCOW: Russian cosmonauts Oleg Novitsky and Pyotr Dubrov opened a hatch of the Poisk docking compartment aboard the International Space Sta...
MOSCOW: Russian cosmonauts Oleg Novitsky and Pyotr Dubrov opened a hatch of the Poisk docking compartment aboard the International Space Station (ISS) to begin their spacewalk for integrating the Nauka multi-purpose laboratory module.
"The hatch is open and the time of the extravehicular activity begins," a Mission Control specialist said during talks broadcast on NASA’s website.
Cosmonaut Dubrov will be the first to go into space and will be followed by Novitsky.
Overall, Russian cosmonauts will make about ten spacewalks to integrate the Nauka research lab. The previous spacewalk was conducted on June 2.
Russia’s latest Nauka multi-purpose research lab was launched from the Baikonur spaceport on July 21. The module docked with the orbital outpost on July 29.
The Nauka multi-functional laboratory module is for implementing a Russian program of applied research and experiments. With the launch of the Nauka research module into operation, the Russian segment of the International Space Station will receive additional space for equipping workplaces, storing cargoes and accommodating water and oxygen regeneration equipment.
The Nauka module will provide a second toilet for Russian cosmonauts (the first is located in the Zvezda module) and a room for a third crewmember. It will also use the European Robotic Arm (ERA) that will help perform some operations without spacewalks.
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