Space-Walkers Install ISS Solar Wings

Returning Mission Specialist Steve Swanson, who also flew on Shuttle Atlantis in 2007, and first-timer Rick Arnold of the Hardware Integration Team, slept in the Quest airlock at reduced air pressure to prepare their bodies for the 7-hour assignment.

The two astronauts carefully maneuvered a 14-meter-long, 14-metric-ton girder into position with the Canadian-made robotic arm, then securely bolted the support framework for the wings and attached its many "umbilical" connections. They released the locks and cinches holding the truss panels, which will be slowly unfurled to create a symmetrical four wings on each side, now making eight total.

The National Aeronautics and Space Administration (NASA) built the giant arrays to form the final segment of the electricity grid, completing the station’s planned construction. Two more spacewalks are planned by the current shuttle crew before they return home.

The International Space Station (ISS) has been in orbit for 10 years, and is now the largest artificial satellite in Earth orbit, larger than any previous space station, including the Salyuts, Skylab or Mir.

The station has been visited by astronauts of 16 different nations. It generally carries a crew of three, but by summer of 2009 will regularly carry a complement of six. The extra power generated by the new arrays will help support the increased population, and also assist in future scientific experiments conducted on the station.

Reference:
http://www.nasa.gov/mission_pages/station/main/index.html