Spacewalking astronauts boosting station's solar power

Astronauts have ventured out on a spacewalk to reenergize the International Space Station

CAPE CANAVERAL, Fla. -- Astronauts ventured out on a spacewalk Wednesday to outfit the International Space Station with powerful, new solar panels to handle the growing electrical demands from upcoming visitors. It’s the first of a series of spacewalks to equip the aging orbital outpost with smaller but stronger solar wings. The electrical boost is needed to accommodate the paying passengers expected to drop by, beginning with a Russian film crew this fall. NASA put extra safety precautions in place as French astronaut Thomas Pesquet and U.S. astronaut Shane Kimbrough worked on the station's primary power grid, to avoid an electrical shock. The duo had to conduct the most hazardous parts of the spacewalk on the nighttime side of Earth, to prevent the station's old solar panels from soaking up sunlight and generating power. Metal surfaces on their spacesuits were covered to avoid any contact.