Azernews.Az

by Alimat Aliyeva

American astronauts Christopher Williams and Jessica Meir, both members of the International Space Station (ISS) crew, are scheduled to perform a spacewalk on June 30 to carry out repairs on the Canadarm2 robotic arm, AzerNEWS reports.

This was announced by the U.S. National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA).

According to NASA, Williams and Meir will replace a hinge located in the “wrist” section of the robotic manipulator after astronauts detected irregularities in its performance at the end of May. For Williams, this will be his second spacewalk, while Meir will be undertaking her fifth.

Canadarm2 is a Canadian-built robotic arm operating on the U.S. segment of the ISS. The system measures 17.6 meters in length, has seven articulated joints, and weighs approximately 1,800 kilograms. It is capable of handling payloads of up to 116,000 kilograms, playing a crucial role in station operations.

Its main functions include capturing and berthing unmanned cargo spacecraft, moving equipment and supplies along the station’s exterior, assisting with inspections, and supporting astronauts during spacewalks.

An interesting detail is that Canadarm2 is essentially the “workhorse” of the ISS exterior operations—without it, routine cargo deliveries and many maintenance tasks would require significantly more risky and time-consuming manual work by astronauts.