EXTRAVEHICULAR ACTIVITY HARDWARE FOR INTERNATIONAL SPACE STATION

The International Space Station (ISS) relies heavily on extravehicular activity (EVA) for assembly and maintenance. The ISS EVA system provi des the translation aids, tools, and support hardware to allow the cre w to assemble and maintain the U.S. portion of the ISS. The EVA hardwa re supports the three primary phases of an EVA: translation of crew an d hardware to the worksite; worksite setup and restraint; and conducti ng the actual EVA task. The primary hardware items and the uses of the hardware are described. In addition, a brief overview of the Russian ISS EVA capability is provided along with plans for interoperability b etween U.S. and Russian EVA.