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What’s the story
NASA has postponed a planned spacewalk outside the International Space Station (ISS) due to an unspecified “spacesuit discomfort.”
Astronauts Tracy C. Dyson and Matthew Dominick were fully suited up, when the mission was called off just an hour before the spacewalk.
The spacewalk, which was set to be NASA’s 90th at the ISS, was scheduled to begin at 7:25am CDT (5:55pm IST) on Thursday.
Astronauts were preparing for US EVA 90
The cancellation announcement was made at about 6:25am CDT (4:55pm IST), approximately one hour before Dyson and Dominick were supposed to exit the ISS from the Quest airlock.
“Spacewalkers Tracy Dyson and Matt Dominick were preparing for US EVA 90—spacewalk 90—today, but today’s spacewalk will not be proceeding as planned,” a NASA commentator said on the livestream soon after the postponement decision was made.
Astronaut’s medical issue raised questions
Right before the spacewalk was canceled, another NASA astronaut, Mike Barratt, was heard asking flight controllers for a private line to discuss a medical issue.
However, it remains unclear if this pertained to the cancelation or which astronaut was having the discomfort problem.
Despite this incident, NASA confirmed that all “crew members on the station are healthy, and spacesuits are functioning as expected.”
Previous spacesuit incidents at ISS
This incident is not the first time spacesuit issues have disrupted extravehicular activities at the ISS.
In 2019, NASA’s first all-female spacewalk was delayed when one of the astronauts found her spacesuit didn’t fit properly.
More significantly, in 2022, nearly all scheduled spacewalks had to be halted after water was discovered in an astronaut’s helmet post-excursion.
NASA has not yet announced a replacement spacewalk
NASA has not yet announced whether there will be a replacement spacewalk for this canceled mission. However, they confirmed that the next spacewalk is scheduled for June 24.
The cancellation of this spacewalk may reignite discussions about when NASA will upgrade its astronauts’ iconic outfits.
The spacewalk would have been the first for Dyson and the second for Dominick.
Shambhu Kumar is a science communicator, making complex scientific topics accessible to all. His articles explore breakthroughs in various scientific disciplines, from space exploration to cutting-edge research.
