Real Space Cowboys

   Posted in Science/Technology by Amanda Roberts on Jan 30, 2008

The dark of space, illuminated only by the pinpricks of light from millions of homes on the Earth’s surface. This is a place where you have to trust the people and technology around you, because without them you would never survive. This is the place where American astronauts Peggy Whitson and Daniel Tani ventured out to fix a damaged solar wing. The wing harnesses hundreds of volts of electricity and rotates to allow the wing to receive sunlight constantly. Whitson and Tani had to work only while on the dark side of Earth to prevent electrocution from the wing’s cables. Once the wing was repaired, Whitson yelled out “Yee-haw!”

 

This repair comes at the end of a hectic month for NASA. With a US satellite losing power and hurtling towards Earth, rumors of impaired astronauts, and multiple shuttle launch delays, NASA has certainly been in a tight spot recently. Adding this to the Lisa Nowak trial and poor condition of the once state-of-the-art American space shuttles and you have to wonder what will happen next.

 



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1 Comment

  1. So what’s next ? Armageddon ! l)

    Comment by NoName — January 30, 2008 @ 6:02 pm

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