Astronauts fix solar panel with poking and shaking
Robert Curbeam: Astronaut and master mechanic.
Christer Fuglesang: Astronaut and master mechanic.
Astronauts, Robert Curbeam and Christer Fuglesang, were able to fix a stuck solar panel on the International Space Station this Tuesday after a super long fourth space walk. I love this story because of the description of their work on a six and a half hour walk in space.
...spacewalkers spent about five hours poking the partly retracted panel with insulated tools and shaking the storage box to free the stuck sections.
Poking and shaking? So technical. I mean this reminds me of trying to remove the alternator from my old car. I just had to hit it with a hammer and shake it a bunch to get it unstuck. Its good to remember how pedestrian an astronauts' task can really be at times. Now, when I'm poking and prodding at my car I am not in a frigid vacuum. But doing work outside in a Minnesota winter can make you feel that way sometimes.
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