Astronauts floating outside hatch as high-stakes spacewalk begins

(30 Oct 2007) VIDEO AS INCOMING International Space Station - 30 October 2007 1. Astronaut Mission Specialist Scott Parazynski being fitted into his spacesuit 2. Astronauts inside the space station closing an internal hatch as crew prepares for space walk 3. Astronauts opening latch to outer space Johnson Space Centre, Texas - 30 October 2007 4. Various of mission control room International Space Station - 30 October 2007 5. Astronaut Mission Specialist Douglas Wheelock emerging from hatch 6. NASA graphic of photos of two astronauts performing spacewalk, Mission Specialists Parazynski and Wheelock 7. Astronaut's hands holding onto a railing as he manoeuvres into place 8. Wide of international space station, astronaut can be seen in distance 9. Astronaut holding tool while moving into position along space station STORYLINE: Astronauts embarked on a high-stakes space walk on Tuesday to install a solar power tower on the international space station, a job that must be completed to prevent malfunctioning equipment from delaying the addition of a much-anticipated European research lab. Space walkers Scott Parazynski and Douglas Wheelock began their seven-hour jaunt nearly an hour early, eager to begin the daunting construction work. Parazynski will conduct a brief inspection to help engineers understand what is wrong with a gear that controls the station's solar wings. The rotary joint, which was installed in June, makes sure the huge solar panel wings on the right side of the space station are facing the sun. It has been experiencing electrical current spikes for nearly two months. A space walking astronaut found black dust resembling metal shavings inside the motorised joint on Sunday. NASA (United States National Aeronautics and Space Administration) has limited the joint's motion to prevent the debris from causing permanent damage, but that also limits the system's ability to generate power for the station. The space agency added a day to Discovery's mission so space walking astronauts could conduct a detailed inspection of the troublesome joint. That work is scheduled for Thursday. Parazynski will inspect the matching rotary joint that turns the space station's left set of solar wings toward the sun. NASA wants to see what a perfectly running unit looks like to compare it to the malfunctioning one. But Parazynski and Wheelock will mainly focus on finishing the gruelling task of moving the massive beam to its new home on the far left end of the station. The 17-ton girder began its 145-foot (44-metre) journey on Sunday. The space walkers also plan to help astronauts inside the station use a robotic arm to hook up the beam to the orbiting outpost's backbone. Then they will install bolts to hold the beam in place, connect wires to provide power and remove protective covers. The girder's huge solar panels, which are folded up like an accordion, will be unfurled later on Tuesday. The panels, which extend 240 feet (73 metres) from tip to tip when outstretched, will be controlled by the normally functioning left rotary joint. Given the problems with the right rotary joint, NASA needs the newly installed solar panels up and running to proceed with the planned December launch of the European Space Agency's science lab, named Columbus. That lab and a Japanese lab set to be delivered early next year, will latch onto the new Harmony module that Discovery delivered last week. Find out more about AP Archive: Twitter: Facebook: ​​ Instagram: You can license this story through AP Archive: