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5h ago

NASA Astronauts Will Replace Faulty Canadarm2 Wrist Joint on June 30 Spacewalk

Mission managers will only call the repair a success after the new joint is installed and the arm is driven through its full range of motion.

NASA astronaut Chris Williams is pictured outside the International Space Station during a spacewalk to complete the build and installation of a solar array modification kit on March 18, 2026. It was William’s first spacewalk of his career, and the 278th in support of space station maintenance, upgrades, and assembly.
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An astronaut anchored to the International Space Station’s Canadarm2 robotic arm above the blue limb of Earth
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Overview

  • The spacewalk is set to begin at about 8:35 a.m. ET on Tuesday and is expected to last roughly 6.5–7 hours as two astronauts exit the ISS through the Quest airlock.
  • The repair responds to a May 27 failure when the Canadarm2 wrist joint drew elevated motor current and would not move during normal operations.
  • Chris Williams and Jessica Meir will perform the EVA to swap in a 200‑pound spare joint that is already aboard the station while Jack Hathaway and Sophie Adenot support from inside.
  • NASA and the Canadian Space Agency chose an in‑person replacement rather than more remote troubleshooting and warn that additional faults would be revealed only during post‑installation tests.
  • Canadarm2 has operated since 2001 and was built with replaceable parts to allow in‑orbit servicing, and NASA will stream the spacewalk live on NASA+ and major platforms including YouTube, Amazon Prime, and Netflix.