NASA astronauts respond to outrage over availability of suits



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The two astronauts who were supposed to perform the first outing in the fully female space – scuttled last week due to the scarcity of correct size suits – talked about the altered plans by saying that it was safe. was simply an issue of efficiency.

"It was actually based on my recommendation," said astronaut Anne McClain at "Today", hosted Monday morning by the International Space Station.

"I think as the head of the US segment of the space station, we are constantly looking for ways to make our team and our tasks as efficient as possible," she added.

McClain and Christina Koch, two NASA astronauts with Expedition 59, were scheduled to launch the spacewalk on March 29th, but the suits of the right size were not ready enough in time.

According to a NASA press release, astronaut Nick Hague of Koch and his teammate, Nick Kague, provided the mission.

McClain continued, "We sort of shuffled the teams. No exit in the space has been canceled. These guys went out on Friday. I'm going out again next week and we can not wait to see him. "

"The space suit is bulky, whatever your size," said Koch. "It's very important to have a good fit and we are fortunate to be all able to succeed and meet those challenges."

Hague and McClain made the first outing in a series of three on March 22.

According to NASA, they began installing lithium-ion batteries for a pair of solar panels on the International Space Station.

While McClain was on a mission – which was also her first outing in space – she discovered that the best fitted "shirt" in the spacesuit was medium in size.

However, there was only one medium-sized hard torso at the space station that was ready in time for the spacewalk, so Koch wore it. It was his first outing in space.

From now on, McClain will perform his second spacewalk on April 8, for the third in the series, and will be accompanied by Canadian Space Agency astronaut David Saint-Jacques.

Initially, The Hague and Saint-Jacques had to do together the space trip of April 8th.

Spacewalks, also known as extravehicular activities, usually last between five and eight hours and are conducted in such a way that astronauts can repair equipment or perform experiments. The next spacewalk should last about six and a half hours.

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