STS-109 Astronauts Install Experimental Camera Cooling System
Diode Box Assembly, Install Diode Box Controller Cross Strap Harness Diode Box Assembly and Reaction Wheel Assembly-1 (PCU) with the Advanced Camera for Surveys, Install Electronics Support Module and Perform Power Control Unit Cleanup Tasks and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS) Cryogenic Cooler and NICMOS Cooling System Radiator |
The STS-109 crew is performing its fifth space walk to service and upgrade the Hubble Space Telescope Friday morning. The primary objective of this excursion, which is being conducted by Mission Specialists John Grunsfeld and Rick Linnehan, is the installation of an experimental cooling system onto Hubble’s Near-Infrared Camera and Multi-Object Spectrometer (NICMOS).
The space walk began at 2:46 a.m. CST (0846 GMT) and is slated to wrap up about 9:16 a.m. CST (1516 GMT) today.
NICMOS operates at extremely low temperatures, but it has been dormant since 1999 when its coolant was depleted earlier than expected. It is hoped that the cooling system will allow NICMOS to come back online.
Once again, the space walkers are receiving assistance from inside Space Shuttle Columbia. The primary robotic arm operator is Mission Specialist Nancy Currie. Mission Specialists Jim Newman and Mike Massimino are coordinating space walk activities, and Commander Scott Altman and Pilot Duane Carey are documenting the extravehicular activity with still images and video.
Following the space walk, Altman and Carey will fire Columbia’s jets in a series of pulses to raise the telescope’s orbit by 6 kilometers (3.7 statute miles).
