July 4, 2021 — For the primary time, two astronauts have labored outside of China's area station, finishing most effective the second spacewalk within the records of the usa's area application.
Liu Boming and Tang Hongbo started out the six-hour and 46-minute extravehicular pastime (EVA) on Saturday (July 3) at eight:11 p.M. EDT (0011 GMT or 8:eleven a.M. Beijing Time on July four). Liu changed into first to go out the distance station's Tianhe ("Harmony of the Heavens") center module, accompanied by Tang approximately 3 hours later.
Wearing upgraded Chinese Feitian spacesuits, the 2 Shenzhou 12 crewmates equipped the distance station with gear needed to assist destiny sports.
Liu, first of all running on my own, attached a foot restraint and platform to the stop of the station's 33-foot-long (10-meter) robot arm and then installed the arm himself. Shenzhou 12 commander Nie Haisheng then examined the arm's controls, shifting Liu from in the Tianhe module.
Tang, tethered to the handrails walking alongside the outdoors of the distance station, later joined Liu in extending a breathtaking camera. They then persisted working collectively to install different EVA device with the assist of the robot arm.
"After about 7 hours of outdoors activities, the Shenzhou 12 crewmates running intently together efficaciously completed all the scheduled tasks all through the spacewalk," China's Manned Space Agency introduced at the give up of the EVA.
Liu and Tang completed the spacewalk at 2:57 a.M. EDT (0657 GMT or 2:57 p.M. Beijing time) on Sunday.
A second spacewalk is planned for later inside the Shenzhou 12 project, which released with Nie, Liu and Tang on June 16 and is scheduled to final 3 months. In addition to trying out tactics, the EVAs are preparing the station to be elevated with the addition of two laboratory modules to be launched in 2022.
China's first-ever spacewalk was finished by using Zhai Zhigang, commander of the Shenzhou 7 task, in 2008. Liu became part of that mission's team as nicely, and in the course of the 22-minute day trip, accomplished a stand-up EVA, popping his head out of the hatch even as sporting a Russian Orlan spacesuit.
The Chinese Feitian ("flying to space") suits are comparable in layout to the Orlan, with the transportable existence assist device additionally serving as a rear-access hatch into the spacesuit. The Feitian's helmets are geared up with cameras, broadcasting a first-individual view just like NASA's extravehicular interest unit (EMU) spacesuit.
When now not out on a spacewalk, the Shenzhou 12 crewmates were configuring and trying out the Tianhe core module's structures, carrying out technological know-how experiments and taking part in video downlinks, which includes speaking stay with Chinese President Xi Jinping.
When completed, the T-fashioned Tiangong ("Heavenly Palace") area station might be China's first multi-module space station. In addition to web hosting Chinese crews and studies, China plans to invite worldwide partners to visit and paintings aboard the orbiting outpost.
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