Is it time for NASA to get rid of the spacesuits being used by the astronauts in the International Space Station (ISS)?
NASA has announced that it will put on hold all spacewalks until they resolve the water leak issue inside the astronaut's helmets.
(Photo : Photo by Aubrey Gemignani/NASA via Getty Images)
TAMPA, FL - MAY 06: In this handout photo provided by NASA, NASA astronaut Kayla Barron is helped out of the SpaceX Crew Dragon Endurance spacecraft onboard the SpaceX Shannon recovery ship after she and NASA astronauts Raja Chari, Tom Marshburn, and ESA (European Space Agency) astronaut Matthais Maurer landed in the Gulf of Mexico on May 6, 2022 off the coast of Tampa, Florida. Maurer, Marshburn, Chari, and Barron are returning after 177 days in space as part of Expeditions 66 and 67 aboard the International Space Station.
The latest incident happened in March during an ExtraVehicular Activity (EVA). However, this is not the first time it happened. It seems that the spacesuits are already past its prime, which means it's no longer usable.
The spacesuits being used today are over 40 years old; and unfortunately, with the new model still in development, the agency seems to be running out of functional spacesuits. In fact, there are only 18 usable units available today.
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Water Leaks
The recent water leak issue happened on March 23 to European Space Agency astronaut Matthias Maurer. Maurer was working with NASA astronaut Raja Chari outside the space station for seven hours of spacewalk when he noticed water and dampness inside his visor. He took photos of this so the ground team can analyze. However, NASA said that the issue isn't a threat to Maurer's life.
As mentioned, this isn't the first time this happened. In 2013, ESA astronaut Luca Parmitanon noticed a water leak inside his helmet that forced an early wrap-up of the spacewalk. He was about to re-enter the ISS airlock but he was having a hard time breaking as 1.5 liters of water had formed inside his helmet.
"I feel it covering the sponge on my earphones and I wonder whether I'll lose audio contact. The water has also almost completely covered the front of my visor, sticking to it and obscuring my vision," he wrote in a blog post.
The same spacesuit was used two years later by NASA astronaut Terry Virts. After completing the spacewalk, he noticed free-floating droplets of water and a damp absorption pad in his helmet.
What NASA is Doing
Last week, a meeting was helo by the space agency's Aerospace Safety Advisory Panel held by Susan Helms, a former NASA astronaut. She said that spacewalks will be on-hold while they investigate into the water leak.
"Because NASA is thinking through the risk posture for these suits, which are aging, the [spacesuit] is currently no-go for planned EVAs pending an investigation into what they discover," she said.
The spacewalk hold was later on confirmed by Dana Weigel, the deputy manager of the space station program at the Johnson Space Center in Houston.
"We won't do a planned EVA until we've had a chance to really address and rule out major system failure modes," she said.
Related article: NASA's Spacesuit Production Delayed for Two Years as Agency Ran Into Funding Shortfalls
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Written by April Fowell
