NASA spacewalk watch LIVE – Astronauts Kayla Barron and Raja Chari spend SIX HOURS on daring space mission upgrading ISS

Which countries are involved with the ISS?

The International Space Station is a project involving five participating space agencies: NASA (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada).

Tech on the ISS, continued

"The International Space Station is about the size of a six-bedroom home based on its interior volume,"  photographer Roland Miller, author of Interior Space: A Visual Exploration of the International Space Station.

"That seems like a fairly finite environment, and I’m sure it feels that way to the astronauts and cosmonauts while they are aboard for five or six months."

"For the Interior Space project to be successful, I knew I would have to get to know the station’s interior in great detail."

Tech on the ISS

The International Space Station is packed with tech goodies.

Technology includes a potable water dispenser onboard the ISS, which is considered an intelligent machine, a high-tech lab, and an isolated confined space.

The Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) Test Facility offers a number of different technological advances for astronauts to use onboard while in space.

This includes HVAC, CO2 scrubbing, an oxygen generation system, and the urine recycling facility.

Tech on the ISS

The International Space Station is packed with tech goodies.

Technology includes a potable water dispenser onboard the ISS, which is considered an intelligent machine, a high-tech lab, and an isolated confined space.

The Environmental Control and Life Support Systems (ECLSS) Test Facility offers a number of different technological advances for astronauts to use onboard while in space.

This includes HVAC, CO2 scrubbing, an oxygen generation system, and the urine recycling facility.

What do astronauts drink on the ISS, continued

That space toilet was launched off the coast of Virginia in early October on a rocket that headed to the International Space Station that can help astronauts reserve some water.

However, because of the strong acids used in the toilet, there is only a handful of metals that can withstand them over time.

Although titanium is one of those metals, it's fairly expensive. So Nasa went with a 3D printed technique to make titanium parts lighter than usual.

Aerospace engineer Jim Fuller once joked: "When the astronauts have to go, we want to allow them to boldly go."

And this isn't the first time that astronauts have been drinking their urine.

They've been consuming the beverage on the ISS since 2009, but the recent addition of the toilet makes it that much more efficient and comfortable.

What do astronauts drink on the ISS?

There's only so much water that can be taken aboard the ISS.

Every liquid, from urine to sweat, must be saved and turned into water.

“When it comes to our urine … today’s coffee is tomorrow’s coffee!” Nasa astronaut Jessica Meir said in a previous .

Nasa has spent $23 million on a space toilet that uses extremely powerful acids to treat astronaut urine to make it clean.

How to watch

A recording of the spacewalk is able to be viewed online on .

Purpose of the spacewalk

The purpose behind the spacewalk was to assemble and install modification kits required for upcoming solar array upgrades on the International Space Station, according to .

Who did the spacewalk?

Flight Engineers Kayla Barron and Raja Chari conducted the Tuesday, March 15, spacewalk.

Who holds the record for most spacewalks?

Anatoly Solovyev of the Russian Federal Space Agency now for most spacewalks with 82.22 hours from 16 extravehicular activities (EVAs), followed by NASA's Michael Lopez-Alegria with 67.40 hours from 10 EVAs.

Three most memorable spacewalkers

According to , there have been more than hundreds of spacewalks since 1965. Out of those, the following are three of the most memorable:

• Alexei Leonov: On March 18, 1965, Leonov was the first person to perform a spacewalk. The astronaut from the Soviet Union spent approximately 20 minutes outdoors before having trouble going back through the hatch because his suit had enlarged. To return, Leonov bled out part of his air.
• Ed White: On June 3, 1965, White performed the first US spacewalk three months after the Soviet Union and spent around 20 minutes moving in space with the use of a gas cannon.
• Bruce McCandless: In 1984, NASA astronaut Bruce McCandless performed the first untethered spacewalk, using a type of jetpack dubbed the Manned Maneuvering Unit. He initially put it to the test within the Challenger's cargo compartment, then flew it 320 feet (98 meters) out from the space shuttle.

What is the purpose of the ISS?

The ISS was designed to serve as a laboratory, observatory, and factory while also providing transportation, maintenance, and a staging platform for future missions to the Moon, Mars, and asteroids.

However, not all of the uses envisioned in NASA and Roscosmos' first have been realized.

The ISS was assigned new tasks under the , including economic, diplomatic, and educational missions.

How many orbits does ISS complete daily?

The International Space Station every 93 minutes, completing 15.5 orbits every day.

What is the ISS?

The International Space Station (ISS) is a low-Earth-orbiting modular space station (habitable artificial satellite).

Nasa (United States), Roscosmos (Russia), JAXA (Japan), ESA (Europe), and CSA (Canada) are among the five space agencies involved in the project.

Intergovernmental control the ownership and usage of the space station.

The station acts as a microgravity and space environment research laboratory, where astrobiology, astronomy, meteorology, physics, and other subjects are studied.

The International Space Station is ideal for testing spacecraft systems and equipment for potential long-duration trips to the Moon and Mars.

Could SpaceX save the ISS? continued

On Twitter, Musk reacted to Roscosmos Director General Dmitry Rogozin with nothing but the SpaceX logo.

Nasa now relies on Russia to launch its humans into space, but SpaceX has been tasked with taking over in the future.

Mark Vande Hei, one of their astronauts on the International Space Station, will make an unpleasant return to Earth on March 30 aboard a Russian Soyuz MS-19 spaceship destined for Kazakhstan.

A space specialist recently tweeted a series of mock-ups of how the ISS may appear and function without the Russian component.

Could SpaceX save the ISS?

Elon Musk has indicated that if Russia withdraws, SpaceX may preserve the International Space Station, and experts have worked out ideas for how the corporation could do it.

Russia is an important element of the ISS, providing the technology that allows it to stay in space securely.

However, the continuing invasion in Ukraine, which threatens the ISS's existence, is putting strain on the 23-year relationship.

In reaction to sanctions, Russia's space director has previously threatened to let the station crash upon the US or Russia.

Career-first for Raja Chari

While the spacewalk marked Kayla Barron's second, this was Raja Chari's first, according to .

Barron and Chari easily identifiable in space

, Barron was extravehicular crewmember 1 in the red-striped suit, while Chari was extravehicular crewmember 2 in the black-striped outfit.

ISS to be kept operational until 2030

According to recently released blueprints defining the International Space Station's future, Nasa proposes to keep it operational until the end of 2030, after which it would be crashed into a remote section of the Pacific Ocean known as Point Nemo.

The space station has hosted more than 200 astronauts from 19 different countries, symbolizing a continuous human presence in space.

Commercially managed space stations, according to , will take the place of the ISS as a forum for collaboration and scientific study.

Is Raja Chari married?

Chari is married to Cedar Falls native Holly Schaffter Chari, and the pair has three children.

Who is Raja Chari? continued

Chari was chosen for NASA Astronaut Group 22 in June 2017, and she reported for duty in August to begin her two-year training as an astronaut.

Chari was chosen for the Artemis Team in December 2020, a group of astronauts tasked with helping lay the way for the future lunar missions, including sending the first woman and next man to walk on the lunar surface in 2024.

In the same month, he became the from Group 22 to be chosen for a space mission, SpaceX Crew-3, which he presently leads.

Since Gerald Carr, who led the Skylab 4 mission in 1973, Chari is the only NASA rookie to command a spaceflight.

Who is Raja Chari?

Born June 24, 1977, Raja Chari is a Nasa astronaut and American test pilot.

He has over 2,000 flight hours and is a graduate of the US Air Force Academy, Massachusetts Institute of Technology, and the US Naval Test Pilot School. In the United States Air Force, he is a colonel.

Chari earned a Bachelor of Science in astronautical engineering and engineering science, with a minor in mathematics, from the US Air Force Academy in Colorado Springs, Colorado, in 1999.

Chari went on to the Massachusetts Institute of Technology in Cambridge as a Draper Fellow after graduation, getting a Master of Science in aeronautical and astronautical engineering in 2001.

Is Kayla Barron married?

Barron is married to Tom Barron, a Special Forces officer in the United States Army.

Who is Kayla Barron? conclusion

Barron was one of the first women to be appointed as a submarine warfare officer after earning a master's degree.

She was assigned aboard the Ohio-class submarine USS Maine after completing the Navy's nuclear power and submarine officer training program.

Barron completed three patrols as a division officer while serving on the USS Maine.

Barron worked as a Flag Aide to the Superintendent at the Naval Academy until she was chosen as an astronaut after her submarine duty.

Who is Kayla Barron? part three

Barron was chosen for Nasa Astronaut Group 22 in June 2017 and began her two-year training in July.

She is the fifth woman to be chosen as an astronaut candidate from the Naval Academy.

She is preparing for the SpaceX Crew-3 mission, where she will serve as a mission specialist aboard the International Space Station.

On November 10, 2021, she took off on a SpaceX Crew Dragon capsule called Endurance.