spacetoday.net: NASA lifts EVA ban

NASA lifts EVA ban

Posted: Fri, Nov 16, 2007, 6:14 AM ET (1114 GMT)
NASA ended a brief ban on spacewalks on Thursday after concluding its spacesuits did not suffer from a design flaw. The ban was put into place after a Russian cosmonaut noticed a smoky odor and sensation of heat behind his neck during a ground test at the Johnson Space Center late last week. After an investigation, engineers found no evidence of an electrical or other problem with the suit; they instead believe the odor came from a canister in the suit that scrubs carbon dioxide from the suit's air. The decision clears the way for a pair of spacewalks next week by the International Space Station crew to complete the installation of the Harmony module at its permanent location on the station.