Two astronauts installed the International Space Station’s final roll-out solar array Thursday, completing a power upgrade that began in 2021. NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Canadian Space Agency astronaut Joshua Kutryk spent nearly seven hours outside the station installing and deploying the eighth array, NASA reported.
An upgrade years in the making
The new array went on the station’s starboard truss, a structure that supports equipment outside the pressurized living and working modules. It was installed on power channel 3B. NASA said the eight roll-out arrays together increase the station’s generating capacity from 160 kilowatts to about 215 kilowatts.
The project took 18 spacewalks, including work to prepare equipment before astronauts could install the arrays. The final outing followed a similar installation on the other side of the station on October 29. In its preparations update, NASA described how the astronauts planned to use the station’s robotic arm to move the equipment to the work site.
What happened after the installation
Thursday’s spacewalk was Menon’s fifth and Kutryk’s second. On Friday, the Expedition 75 crew turned to post-spacewalk cleanup, biomedical work and routine maintenance, according to NASA’s station log. The completion marks the end of the array installation campaign, while the crew’s regular research and station upkeep continue.