Cosmonauts Successfully Install Solar Panel On Mir Space Station Gets Much Needed Power

The Mir space station was back to nearly full power Thursday for the first time in months after cosmonauts carried out a tricky, six-hour spacewalk to install a new solar panel.

The successful mission gave Russian space officials a measure of vindication over critics who doubted their ability to bounce back from a series of mishaps that have dogged the Mir all year.

The new solar panel brought Mir’s power supply almost to what it was before the space station was rammed by a cargo ship during a practice docking in June.

“Now we have enough power to cover the needs of all equipment in full,” Vladimir Solovyov, head of mission control, told reporters after the spacewalk ended Thursday morning.

As with most operations aboard Mir, this one was not without moments of tension. As the cosmonauts mounted the new solar panel on the outside of Mir’s Kvant module, an automatic mechanism was supposed to unfold it. It got the panel halfway open, then stopped.

It took several more tries, and some manual assistance from the cosmonauts, before the panel fully unfolded.

The Russian duo of Anatoly Solovyov and Pavel Vinogradov then returned safely to the Mir. The two were very tired and lost up to 4-1/2 pounds each during the mission, the officials said.

American astronaut David Wolf stayed inside the Mir during the spacewalk, operating the controls that unfolded the panels and videotaping the mission.

Eight of Mir’s 10 solar panels are now working normally, space officials said. The ninth is operating, but at less than full capacity. One was damaged beyond repair in the June crash.

The accident knocked out four solar panels and cut the Mir’s power supply almost by half. The crew has been working to increase power levels ever since.

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