Spacewalkers Finishing 4 Years of Power Upgrades for Station

NASA astronauts Mike Hopkins (L) and Victor Glover work outside the International Space Station on Feb. 1, 2021. NASA via AP

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla.—A pair of NASA astronauts ventured out on their second spacewalk in under a week Monday to complete a four-year effort to modernize the International Space Station’s power grid.

Over the weekend, flight controllers in Houston used the station’s big robot arm to replace the last pair of old-style batteries with a single better-quality one. Astronauts Mike Hopkins and Victor Glover needed to put the finishing touches on this newest lithium-ion battery to complete a series of spacewalks that began in 2017.