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Spacewalkers install final add-on solar array, completing space station power upgrade
CBS News • • science
Key Points:
- NASA astronauts completed the installation of the eighth and final roll-out solar array (IROSA) on the International Space Station (ISS), concluding a five-year power upgrade project aimed at compensating for the degradation of the original solar arrays.
- The new IROSAs, smaller but more efficient than the original panels, increase the station's power output by about 40%, boosting total capacity from approximately 160 kilowatts to around 215 kilowatts.
- The final installation involved complex spacewalks by NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk, including hand-to-hand transfers of the solar array due to the limited reach of the station's robotic arm.
- The power upgrade ensures the ISS has sufficient electricity to support life support systems, research activities, and visiting vehicles through its planned retirement and de-orbiting in 2030.
