Astronauts Make Final Preps For Station Spacewalks

Two American astronauts are making final preparations for a pair of spacewalks aimed at replacing a failed ammonia coolant pump at the International Space Station.

Expedition 24 flight engineers Doug Wheelock and Tracy Caldwell-Dyson will perform both excursions, which are scheduled for Saturday and next Wednesday. The failed pump module will be replaced on the first spacewalk. The astronauts will connect electrical cables and coolant lines to the new pump on the second excursion.

You can watch live coverage of the spacewalks here in The Flame Trench. Click the NASA TV box on the right side of the page to launch our NASA TV viewer. Live coverage of the first walk will begin at 6 a.m. Saturday. Wheelock and Caldwell-Dyson are scheduled to exit the station at 6:55 a.m. An early start is a possibility if preparations run ahead of schedule.

Check out this official NASA timeline for the spacewalk to follow along with spacewalking work.

Live coverage of the spacewalk next Wednesday also will begin at 6 a.m.