Astronauts Complete ISS Solar Array Upgrade During Spacewalk

WHO:

Space.com - NASA astronaut Anil Menon and Canadian astronaut Joshua Kutryk installed the final International Space Station (ISS) roll-out solar array.

CBS News - Menon and Kutryk performed the spacewalk; NASA began the upgrade program in 2021.

CBS News - NASA flight controllers monitored the panels’ power generation and checked the connections.

WHAT:

Space.com - Menon and Kutryk installed the eighth and final ISS Roll-Out Solar Array, completing a multiyear upgrade effort intended to increase the station’s power generation by 30%.

CBS News - The astronauts installed the final of eight IROSAs, or ISS roll-out solar arrays, to compensate for age-related declines in the original arrays’ output.

CBS News - Each new panel is 63 feet long when extended. Menon said, “These solar arrays are incredible, half the size of the old ones. It's delivering 40% more power.”

CBS News - The original arrays generated about 160 kilowatts before the upgrade; the final IROSA was expected to bring total output to about 215 kilowatts.

CBS News - Menon said the added power supports research and other station activities, including “everything that we do to transform space and open the doors to the future.”

WHERE:

CBS News - The final array was installed at the far-right end of the ISS power truss, on the base of an outboard solar array.

WHEN:

CBS News - The spacewalk began at 8:36 a.m. ET and ended at 3:35 p.m., lasting six hours and 59 minutes.

WHY:

CBS News - The IROSAs were designed to offset power losses caused by more than two decades of exposure of the original arrays to the harsh space environment. The added power is expected to sustain the station through its planned retirement and de-orbiting in 2030.

HOW:

CBS News - The astronauts passed the final rolled-up array between themselves in a leapfrog fashion because the Canadarm II could not reach the installation point while carrying Menon and the array.

CBS News - Menon and Kutryk unfolded the array, bolted it in place, and connected its power and data cables during orbital darkness. After flight controllers detected an expected power-generation issue, the astronauts waited for another night pass to check the connections; the issue was resolved and the blankets were fully extended.

CBS News - NASA began installing IROSAs in 2021. The first was attached at the base of an original wing, followed by six more during later spacewalks. The final two arrays arrived aboard a SpaceX Cargo Dragon earlier in the month, folded in half in its unpressurized trunk.

(UPDATED November 5, 2026 23:06 UTC)

NASA astronauts Anil Menon and Joshua Kutryk installed the space station’s final roll-out solar array. The installation completes an eight-panel upgrade designed to increase the station’s power generation. Controllers checked connections after a power issue; the panels now provide added electricity for station operations.