Space Station Spacewalks, Briefing on Tap For NASA TV

Two International Space Station residents will conduct a pair of spacewalks outside the Russian segment of the complex July 10 and 15, with coverage of both planned for NASA Television.

Expedition 17 Commander Sergei Volkov and Flight Engineer Oleg Kononenko will conduct the first spacewalk July 10 out of the Pirs Docking Compartment's airlock. As part of the inquiry into ballistic landings by the last two Soyuz return spacecraft, Volkov and Kononenko will inspect their Soyuz vehicle and remove one of the pyrotechnic bolts used to connect two of the spacecraft's sections. They also will install a docking target for a new Russian module scheduled for launch late next summer.

NASA TV coverage of the spacewalk will begin at 12:30 p.m. CDT. The 6-hour excursion will start around 1:18 p.m. During the second spacewalk on July 15, Volkov and Kononenko will attach additional docking equipment and experiments to the hull of the Zvezda service module. NASA TV coverage of the July 15 spacewalk will begin at 11:30 a.m., with the spacewalk due to start at 12:08 p.m. Briefings are not planned after either spacewalk.

A mission status briefing to preview both spacewalks will be broadcast on NASA TV beginning at 1 p.m. Tuesday, July 8, from NASA's Johnson Space Center in Houston, with a multi-center question-and-answer opportunity for reporters at other NASA centers. Briefers will include:

- Mike Suffredini, International Space Station program manager - Heather Rarick, Expedition 17 lead flight director - Bob Dempsey, International Space Station spacewalk flight director - Kieth Johnson, Expedition 17 spacewalk officer

For NASA TV streaming video, schedules, and downlink information, visit:

http://www.nasa.gov/ntv

Source: NASA

judythpiazza@newsblaze.com

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