Close Call During ISS EVA

Spacewalk thruster incident alarms NASA, MSNBC

“Behind closed doors, the origin of what one source called a “major close-call incident” and NASA’s reaction to it are the subject of concern within the space agency and between the space station’s U.S. and Russian partners.”

Spacewalk on the wild side, MSNBC

“After a round of denials from Moscow, a U.S.-Russian investigation has confirmed that at least one of the international space station’s astronauts roamed into a “keep-out zone” (or KOZ, in NASA-speak) during a spacewalk last month. In a worst-case scenario, the spacewalkers’ Russian-made Orlan-M suits could have become contaminated with toxic fuel from the station’s thrusters. The internal NASA memo confirms James Oberg’s report for MSNBC.com that the mistake raised concerns at the U.S. space agency, even though the Russians said “nyet problema” at the time.”

NASA Space Station On-Orbit Status 27 January 2005

“During the EVA, attitude control momentum again was observed to build up in the U.S. CMGs (Control Moment Gyros) from reacting to external torques, requiring control authority transfer to SM thrusters to permit gyro desaturation. Attitude control then returned to the CMGs.”