Published 10:33 IST, June 27th 2020
NASA astronaut mistakenly drops a mirror in space during his June 26 spacewalk
Behnken and Chris Cassidy started the “spacewalk” on June 26. NASA reported that Cassidy dropped a mirror in space while spacewalking. Know more.
On June 27, as astronauts Cassidy and Behnken were on their spacewalk journey, commander Cassidy lost control of the mirror that was attached to his spacesuit. The mirror which flew away with a speed of one foot per second luckily did not cause any mishap to anyone. However, the object is now one amongst the many space junks that now orbit the Earth. NASA officials mentioned that Cassidy dropped the small mirror by accident as he lost control while leaving the International Space Station for a spacewalk to work on the batteries. Read on to know about what happened during Behnken and Cassidy's spacewalk yesterday.
Cassidy and Behnken replacing old batteries in space
Behnken and ISS astronaut Chris Cassidy had started their “spacewalk” on June 26. Among many milestones for the hours-long walk that is underway, the latest update posted by NASA and the ISS said that first of the three ageing nickel-hydrogen batteries have been replaced.
However, when Commander Chris Cassidy went out in the space for a spacewalk to replace the last bunch of old batteries, the mirror that was attached to his hand floated away at the speed of a foot per second. However, when Bob Behnken followed him, he was found to be safe and no mishaps happened due to the floating mirror.
NASA, however, said that the mirror posed no risk to the astronauts' spacewalk or the space station. Astronauts who step out for their spacewalk wear a wrist mirror on their sleeves to get better views while working. The mirror is said to be about 5 inches by 3 inches and weighed approximately one-tenth of a pound.
It is expected that once the six new lithium-ion batteries are installed, the ISS should work fine for the rest of its operational period. The new batteries are said to be more powerful and efficient as compared to the old nickel-hydrogen batteries.
SpaceX's first astronaut launch
Few weeks after the historic launch of SpaceX Crew Dragon that carried Bob Behnken and Doug Hurley to the International Space Station (ISS), Behnken and ISS astronaut Chris Cassidy have started the “spacewalk” on June 26. Currently, Cassidy and Behnken have six more batteries to plug in before their spacewalk job is complete. The job is actually very difficult as each battery is about a yard tall and wide, plus it weighs 180 kilograms i.e. 400 pounds.
Their spacewalks will continue through the month of July after which Behnken will return to Earth in August. He will be aboard a SpaceX Dragon capsule. This is the seventh spacewalk for both Hurley and Behnken, each of them has spent more than 30 hours in the space as of yet.
Promo Image courtesy: NASA Twitter
Updated 10:33 IST, June 27th 2020