British astronaut Tim Peake will become the first Briton to walk in space today when he ventures out of the International Space Station (ISS) to help fix a broken power unit.
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Luca Parmitano, an Italian astronaut, claims he nearly drowned when his helmet filled with water on a spacewalk – and Carbon dioxide sensors have since been installed into helmets to help alert astronauts to the problem.
Earlier in the spacewalk, Col Kopra reported abnormal carbon dioxide readings from his suit. The US space agency swiftly terminated the spacewalk at the four-hour and 10-minute mark.
This is at least the fourth time an astronaut on a spacewalk has found water inside his or her helmet or suit.
His daring six-hour mission, which involved carrying out key repairs to the International Space Station (ISS), was a success as Britain swelled with pride watching from Earth.
The astronauts waiting anxiously inside pulled off Kopra’s helmet, then measured the water that had leaked, presumably from the suit’s cooling system.
Shortly after flight director Royce Renfrew at mission control learned that Kopra was feeling dampness in his helmet, he chose to cut short the spacewalk.
His mission has attracted widespread attention in Britain, with his spacewalk beamed live on news channels. The space agency’s stream starts at 6.30AM ET, with the spacewalk itself scheduled to begin at 7.55AM ET and lasting for 6 and a half hours.
Mr. Parmitano tweeted Friday afternoon that he was happy to see the two astronauts make it safely back inside the ISS.
Timothy Kopra, who reported a small water bubble followed by a film of water inside his helmet, and Timothy Peake moved quickly back into the space station’s airlock, which was repressurized to allow them to remove their suits.
She also included emoji of a space rocket and the Union Jack.
Peake’s job was to haul a bulky component called a sequential shunt unit, contained in a white bag as big as a suitcase.
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Tim launched in to space in December to board the station which is 400km (248 miles) above the earth. This came after the primary objective of replacing the failed voltage regulator had been completed successfully.
