Computer Crash At Station Stalls Spacewalking Work

A computer crash aboard the International Space Station is stalling forward progress in the first of three spacewalks planned during shuttle Atlantis' weeklong stay at the outpost.

One of three U.S. command and control computers that run station systems crashed, cutting power to video feeds that enable crewmates inside the outpost from seeing and supporting spacewalkers Garrett Reisman and Stephen Bowen.

Atlantis mission specialist Piers Sellers, who is operating the robotic arm that Reisman is anchored on, lost his video view of the work going on outside the station. So Reisman and Bowen are standing down until power and video views can be restored.

The station computer system automatically switched to one of the other two command and control units, so critical functions were never lost. But it is taking a while to reboot systems being used to support the spacewalking operation outside the station.