CHAPTER 18 DAY IN THE LIFE: RISKY AND REWARDING SPACEWALKS—SPACE SHUTTLE MISSION STS-120/ISS-10A 328 Figure 22. Parazynski, partway through the repair. Three of the five required cufflinks are installed. Figure 23. Parazynski is watching the array unfurl and photographing the final state of the cufflinks (top right) after performing the repair. The control center watched the repair sites during the array deploy to determine whether the repair was working. The control center view was from a video camera mounted on Parazynski’s helmet. Figure 24. The repair was successful in bridging the gaps in the array, with the white cufflink cords holding together the pieces so the hinge areas did not zipper open any further. The cufflinks installed pretty easily, thanks to a good ground design and build-up by the crew. But the installation into the upper holes required more reach than the robotic arm possessed. Some truly tense Mission Control moments occurred when the arm was stretched as far as it could go, yet Parazynski needed to go a little bit higher even though he is a tall individual. This situation felt like a simulation in Mission Control when instructors throw a really hard malfunction in to see if the flight controllers sweat. In the end, the ground agreed to have Parazynski pull the upper part of the array down some using his tools, thereby allowing him to install the upper end of the cufflinks. Figures 21-25 show the view on the ISS during the spacewalk, whereas Figure 26 shows the activities going on inside Mission Control during the EVA.