Russian cosmonauts spent seven hours and 25 minutes on their spacewalk on Thursday. Video playback showed the two handling data cables and installing handrails 250 miles above Earth's atmosphere.
Ever since it was launched in 1998, the International Space Station (ISS) has received several upgrades to keep its technology up to date. According to NASA, the ISS has already gotten 243 space missions for support, assembly, and installments. Spacewalkers have now spent 63 days and 23 hours in total working outside the station.
The Russian cosmonauts' spacewalk that happened at 6:16 PM EDT Thursday was the 11th spacewalk for this year. Both NASA and ISS researchers oversaw their process of their dangerous space venture.
Russian Cosmonauts Spacewalk for 7+ Hours to Install the Nauka and Poisk Module
The cosmonauts Pyotr Dubrov and Oleg Novitskiy were tasked to connect television, rendezvous systems, and internet cables on the newly arrived Nauka multipurpose laboratory module. They also jettisoned a cable reel, attached handrails, and installed a biology experiment on the pre-existing Poisk module.
This is the third spacewalk for both cosmonauts, both of whom have now spent 22 hours and 38 minutes in spacewalking. NASA tweeted highlights of their most recent spacewalk.
One hour into today’s spacewalk and cosmonaut Oleg Novitskiy works with a data cable that will be routed to the multipurpose laboratory module. Meanwhile, cosmonaut Pyotr Dubrov installed three handrails on the outside of the module and now heads to join Novitsky. pic.twitter.com/pOyV0gy5xX
— NASA (@NASA) September 9, 2021
In the tweet above, Novitskiy is seen working with data cables to be routed on the multipurpose laboratory module. He specifically tried connecting the ethernet cable, which would operate payload commanding and robotic arm manipulation. During this clip, Dubrov finished installing three handrails around the module and was about to join Novitskiy.
Spacewalk Video Captures Stunning Video of Earth 250 Miles Above Surface
A second tweet was posted by the International Space Station from the spacewalker's camera. It is undetermined if this camera came from Novitskiy or Dubrov. Near the 1.25-time marker, the cosmonaut briefly looked over to his left, which showcased Earth.
This view from a spacewalker's camera looks toward the base of the @Roscosmos Nauka module and shows the Earth over 250 miles below. https://t.co/yuOTrYN8CV pic.twitter.com/9d62fBjUyS
— International Space Station (@Space_Station) September 9, 2021
The video of Earth was incredibly stunning. Aside from the vibrant blue color and overcast clouds, it also showed textures of distant islands on its surface. Notably, the circular outline of the planet's edge is emphasized with a soft blue glow.
Other Interesting Space Ventures
Aside from the ISS spacewalks, space exploration and research have also gotten busy in the past week. For example, NASA's Hubble Space Telescope peered through a Small Magellanic Cloud outside the Milky Way, about 210,000 light years away. It revealed a breathtaking sight called star nursery NGC 346.
The star cluster featured dozens of hot, blue, high-mass stars, which generated a burst of rainbow colors in its atmosphere. The intensely active and newly formed blue stars are seen scattered near the middle of the image. It is also worth noting that red clouds of dust mixed with the image, further emphasizing the glow of the stars.
There should be many other exciting space research and updates from NASA later this year.
Related Article: Hubble Telescope Pictures: NASA Observatory Snaps Rare Galaxy Phenomenon, Iconic Eagle Nebula
