NASA ISS EVA Cancelled because of Water Leak in Spacesuit

ESA astronaut Luca Parmitano takes a moment to say hello to NASA's Chris Cassidy during their spacewalk, July 9, 2013. 

This was the first of two Expedition 36 excursions to prepare the International Space Station for a new Russian module and perform additional installations on the station’s backbone.



NASA aborted a planned six-hour spacewalk by two astronauts outside the International Space Station today (July 16) when one of the spacewalkers reported "a lot of water" inside his spacesuit helmet, a potentially scary situation.

European Space Agency astronaut Luca Parmitano reported that helmet started filling with water, making it difficult for him to continue the spacewalk outside of the International Space Station.

The spacewalk ended after one hour and 32 minutes. It was supposed to last six hours and 15 minutes. The crew was in no immediate danger during the spacewalk, NASA officials said.

"There is some in my eyes, and some in my nose," Parmitano said. "It's a lot of water."

This is the second shortest spacewalk in history. The shortest — lasting only 14 minutes — happened in 2004 when astronaut Mike Fincke had a pressurization problem in his oxygen tank.

NASA astronaut Chris Cassidy and Parmitano began their spacewalk today at 7:57 a.m. EDT (1157 GMT). They wore NASA-issue spacesuits called Extravehicular Mobility Units, or EMUs. It ended at 9:29 a.m. EDT (1329 GMT).

Parmitano reported the water in his spacesuit about one hour and nine minutes into the spacewalk. The cause of the water leak isn't yet known, but the tasks scheduled for the spacewalk can be deferred until a later excursion, NASA officials said