In a proactive move to defend against debris impacts, the Tiangong space station in China received upgraded protection this past Friday, September 26th.
During a six-hour spacewalk, two astronauts from the Shenzhou 20 mission worked diligently to install additional shielding on the station, as reported by the state broadcaster CCTV.
This marked the fourth excursion into space for the Shenzhou 20 crew, who have been aboard the Tiangong station since arriving on April 24th.
Astronauts Chen Zhongrui and Wang Jie conducted the EVA, while their teammate Chen Dong stayed inside the T-shaped space station. According to CCTV, the astronauts completed their tasks effectively, which involved installing debris protection devices and inspecting external equipment.
The initiative to enhance Tiangong’s debris shielding has been a consistent focus throughout the mission, with previous EVAs on May 22nd and August 15th dedicated to similar upgrades.
Although Tiangong is currently about 20% the size of the International Space Station, plans are underway to potentially add more modules to this remarkable facility.
Shenzhou 20 stands as the ninth crewed mission to Tiangong, and the astronauts are nearing the end of their six-month voyage aboard the orbiting station.
